The Price was Paid
by Christofori's Dream
Summary: When Zelda sent Link back seven years to live his childhood, she didn't know what it would do. She didn't know what changes he had had to go through in order to travel the currents of time. And now that the quest is over, he is the one paying the price.
1. The begining of the Story

This story came to me over a couple of years of collected notes. I was reading fan fictions that haven't seen the light of day in years and….out popped this. So hope you enjoy it.

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_**Prologue**_

"Goodbye Link. Perhaps we will meet in the future, but for now… you must be given the childhood you were striped of." Link gave Zelda a questioning look. Did she not know what the master sword had done to him? No she couldn't have. If she did, she would never be attempting to send him back to childhood.

He wanted to tell her. He really did, but his mouth wouldn't move. Besides, it was not the kind of thing he wanted her to be burdened with. He didn't want her to live with the knowledge of what he had had to give up in order to save the kingdom. If he could help it, she would never know.

"Goodbye, my sweet hero." And she played. The sweet sound of the Ocarina no longer sounded with the beauty it had once held, at least to Links ears. He had to hold back a cringe. She could never know what she was doing to him. She had lived a hard enough life without the guilt of his what the quest had cost him besides his childhood.

The sharp distorted sound of someone other than himself playing the ocarina filled the air and he could feel the tide of time griping itself upon his unresisting body. His blue eyes watched her one last time, and he wished his mouth would move, more then he ever had before. He desperately wished he could say something to her, if only to say goodbye. Even still, he was ripped from her view, Zelda had a vague tingling of something being not quite as it should, and then it too was gone. She was left alone; a feeling she would live with for many years to come.

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This is the beginning of a Story…But I am repeating myself. Review if you like it, Flame if you don't, but make a comment will you? **Revised 3/22/05**

_Review!_


	2. The Boy who would be Hero

Here is the next part of The Price was Paid. Hope you enjoy it.

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_The boy who would be hero_

Link, Hero of time and Ex-kokiri, knelt looking at the alter in the Temple of Time. He knew his presence puzzled the priests who lurked in the hidden doorways along the hall, but he would not move. He had been there for well over three hours; ever since Zelda had sent him back.

A tear almost trailed out of his eye, but he managed to smother it before it escaped. An overwhelming spark of loneliness grappled with his mind, before he laid that to rest as well.

The world of hyrule was exactly as it had been seven years before the fall of Gannondorf. But link…he was exactly the same. A child trapped forever in a seventeen year old body. A mute hero for the use of a nation, cursed with eternal youth.

He and Zelda hadn't known what they were getting into that much was certain. And as much as he wanted to blame the princess, he knew he was to blame was well. Of course his bitterness was not devoted entirely to the task she had forced on him. It was her he was sour at the most. She would abide no marks of the quest they had both endured. Bearing no marks of the quest they had endured, she would live and die as any other person.

Heaving a sigh heavier than the temple it's self he stood, flexing his tired muscles. His green hat slipped from his head revealing his mess hair. With quick reflexes he managed to grab the hat just before it hit the ground. Behind the secret stone doors, he could hear the priests gasp. He wished he could chuckle quietly, just for effect. Instead he winked at the part of the wall he knew to be a door, as if to say, 'Get used to it, I'll be a round a long time.' and then was on his way.

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In hyrule castle a ten year old princess Zelda sat in her garden courtyard watching ambassadors from around the world fawn over her father. The monotony of it had lulled her head onto her and almost put her into a sleep of precarious balance. Just as her final winks were about to come on, a man dress in blue robes dashed into the hall.

"Sire! It must speak with you!" the activity in the court halted immediately.

"Who are you to speak like this?" the king demanded in a bellowing tone.

"I am Grolim, son of Grolan, Priest of the Temple of Time." The court chattered like squirrels having just found a stash of nuts.

"But my good sir" he began in taunting "I was taught to believe that the priests never leave the temple, what kind of wool are you tying to pull over my eyes? I warn you Grolim, son of Grolan I have sharp wits, I will not be lied to easily?"

The Priest bowed. "You are indeed correct, my liege. We priests are reluctant to leave the peace and seclusion of our Temple sanctuary, but we decided this news was too important to not tell you as soon as we could." His blue robes seemed to puff with self importance unbecoming to his chosen calling.

"Very well then tell us of this news, priest."

Grolim nodded and stepped to him full height.

"Today a boy appeared in the Temple of Time."

"And?" the king interrupted. "I am sure several boys visit the temple everyday."

"Sire, I was not finished. He didn't enter, he appeared. In a flash of blue light, brighter then anything I have ever witnessed before." The court's sense of interest seemed to be peaked. The king still sat uninterested in his high backed chair. He did however shift into a more comfortable position, which set his body jiggling like a plastic bag full of Jell-O.

"And I suppose this is odd for the temple? Just last week a man in the square denounced the house of Hyrule, My family, and declared that he had found the truth of all things. Surly illusions of that nature are common place."

" Sire, If I may. It was no illusion. The boy appeared out of thin air, we sensed no use of magic, not even a druid chant ritual. And then sire he knelt at the alter for several hours, my lord. Never moving from his place. And when he did stand, His hat slipped. Sire he caught it before it even hit the ground. His reflexes are fast sire; I would not want to be against him in a war."

And the king was loosing patience fast; a boy with fast reflexes hardly warranted the attentions of the king and all the Priests of The Goddesses

"Is that all?"

The priest smiled weakly, "No sire."

"On his hand glowed the bright golden triangle of the Triforce." The room exploded in gasps and shocking declarations of distress. The king sat silently in his chair, stroking his rapidly graying beard. His eyes seemed to be doing a number of equations in his head. Anger lit a fire in his mind, and he couldn't help himself from wanted the Priest to be gone.

"And what did this boy look like?"

"He was small sire, skinny, but he couldn't have been younger than sixteen. He had hair the color of the sun and wore a green tunic in the style of the forest children. His white leggings were patched and worn, as if he had seen many battles, and he had a curious hat. Also sire, on his back was a sword, with a deep purple handle. It is our belief that this sword is the Master Sword of legend."

The court turned their upset faces towards the King. And he summed up their thoughts in a sentence.

"Take him to the dungeon, have him headed for blasphemy."

The poor Priest yelled to anyone who would hear, that he was telling the truth, but none would listen. Shocked Courtiers held smelling salts to each others noses as Priest Grolim's screams became silent. Standing from his great golden thrown the king declared.

"There is no one with the Goddesses' mark; the people of the kingdom know that to wear the mark is sacrilege. The Master Sword is safely in the Temple of time, do not Despair."

The frightened Courtiers were herded out of the room, women continued to swoon and the men watched their Wives and Daughter's displays in indignity.

With Prying ears gone, The king of Hyrule motioned for his Captain of the guard to come forward.

"Find the Boy who bares the mark and destroy him. This calamity can yet be averted."

"Calamity sire?" the captain queered.

"Naturally I say calamity, Captain. The Champion of the Goddesses appears only when the land is in danger, as we can clearly see there is no threat to our country. It is obvious someone wants to cause ruin to the land of hyrule. If the people think a hero has appeared, there will be mass hysteria. We cannot let that happen, especially since there is no threat. Do you understand me now?"

"Yes, sire. But must we destroy him?"

"I understand that sometimes my religious convictions are thought of as extreme or even ludicrous I have been told on many occasions that I am obsessive in that area. However, his boy has not only attempted to bring hyrule to it's knees by pretending to be the hero of the Goddesses, but he dares to wear their mark for his dirty cause. This goes deeper then irreverence captain, this is out right dissolute sacrilege. He has dared to sully their grace by disgracing the Triforce. If you remember I forbid the people of hyrule to use the symbol of the Triforce in anything but religious activities."

The captain nodded his head down in respect.

"You are right sire, I was wrong o question you."

"There's a good lad. Now, collect a contingent f the guard and hunt down this wicked blasphemer. I want his head to roll for the executioners block before night fall. Understood?"

"Yes Sir!" The captains smart salute pleased the king. He waved the man off imperiously.

Out in the courtyard, Zelda gasped. _A boy with the mark of the Goddesses._ Thoughtfully, she removed her own white silken glove and bore the golden Triforce to the noonday sun. _A mark just like mine._

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Link jumped from the roof top he had been hiding on and hide behind a chimney.

_'Who would have thought? The hero of time crouching and hiding in the roof tops of Hyrule Castle Town, I don't believe this! Running from handfuls of guards, trying not to be arrested, and what is the charge? Sacrilege! Of all the people here, Call me Sacrilegious is like saying the Gerudo are kind misunderstood little girls who just want to play nice with their dollies and that Ganondorf didn't want to take over hyrule, he was forced to by his evil twin who is also named Ganondorf. Makes no sense. Just because I have the mark of the Triforce, people start trying to do me in. This is ridiculous.' _His mental rants continued at a constant rate. Sometimes dipping into the Explicatives Navi had been so fond of.

Still continuing his fume he glanced over his shoulder, confirming that the Master Sword was indeed still slung over his back.

_'There is no way they will let me out of the city with this. In their shrunken minds, no seventeen year old kid could ever wield the Master Sword. I would be arrested before leaving the town square. The people may not know wat the Sword looks like exactly, but they know what is should look like basically.'_ A stagnant wish for the life he had known before the quest raced itself around his mind, but he knew it was not to be. He was doomed the moment he touched the Master Sword. Forever it would be his lone companion.

Below he could hear yells of the guards searching for the supposed blasphemer. Vaguely he wondered where the guards had learned to search. Their methods consisted of collecting lines of suspects and questioning them till their frightened suspects collapsed into tears.

He dared to peak over the bricking of the house he was currently hiding on, and saw a line up of perspective culprits. If link could speak, he would have stifled a giggle. His mood had greatly improved since the temple. A good chase always did. Despite all his grumblings he truly enjoyed the thrill of the chase, whether he was hunter or the hunted. As he watched the show his attention became wrapped up in their current suspect; a young man of about 18. His face was red, baring witness of the guards brutality. So caught up in the display link didn't hear the roofs door open.

"Hey you! Stay were you are!" the exclamation stunned link out of his fun. He turned to face the hylian solider.

Link stood, mute as ever.

The guard approached, sword drawn. Link glanced at it, and backed into the low banister wall he had just been watching over. Smiling at the guard he executed a spectacular back flip off the three story roof and into the main square, he landed softly and righted himself without a problem. After all he had jumped from higher places and lived.

The guard on the roof was yelling, but Link had already managed to attract the attention of the scared civilians that had been dragged out into the night streets. He twisted taking in possible escape routes as the guards advanced. Seeing none, he shrugged the Master Sword out of its scabbard and swung it for balance as he prepared himself for the impending fight. He could count the villagers out of this fight, but that still left eight guards. Not good. But still, he had faced worse. Link pulled his Hylian shield from its place and fell in into a stance that had scared better men than the guards that were now mere yards away from him.

The fight that ensued went down in Hyrule Castle Town history; One teenager against eight Hylian guardsmen. The Soldiers were slaughtered without even managing to nick the Teen

Link looked at the townspeople, huddled together in scared clumps and again, would have laughed. He then replaced his sword and shield and left the frightened City of Hyrule Castle Town.

Link would not enter the city for seven years. And even then it would not be by his choosing.

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Alright chapter two! What do you think? Give me your input! I would love to hear from you! **Revised 3/22/05.**

_Review!_


	3. The Ghosts that Haunt the Blameless

Now, for the price was paid part three….indeed. Please give me input on how I am doing. What would you suggest I do to improve my writing?

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_The ghosts that haunt the blameless _

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This was not the first time in seven years that he had sat alone in hyrule field, and it would not be the last. He saw sitting on his favorite fence today; it was the landmark of what had once been a great wall. It had been built by the ancient Hylians to keep the LeLandites from invading which work completely wrong. The LeLandites destroyed the wall and massacred the soldiers guarding it. In commemoration for those who had died a small wall had been constructed. Now all that remained of the real wall was a small cinder block jumble of stuff next to Lon Lon ranch, in view of Hyrule Castle.

He was drawing a disproportionate Hyrule Castle Town. Not that he was doing it on purpose, but Link's drawing skills were not as developed as he would have like. As he had only just recently taken up drawing as a hobby and did not have the means to practice.

With a sigh he put his lopsided drawing to the side and watched the castle with decisive interest. Inside he knew Zelda would be eating dinner. It was about that time after all. Link could remember the last time he had truly eaten, but that bothered him very little. He hadn't been hungry since he opened the door of time; which was probably the only reason he had survived not only the quest, but the last seven years as well.

His eyes itched a little; tonight he would have to find somewhere better so sleep (Sleep wasn't necessary for him, but it did feel nice to rest). His last choice had been a tree turned on it's side and hollowed out by the elements, which would have been fine, had it not been for the land slide that occurred. Rubbing his eyes he stood leaving the Disproportional rendition of Hyrule Castle Town on the wall. It wasn't anything special to him; he'd stolen the paper to begin with. His breath sighed a heavy groan.

_'My feet are tired, and yet no matter how much I sleep it makes no difference. I need somewhere I can live, without worrying about hurting people' _Within his heart, link still wished for a home, a family, and a safe place to be. But fates heavy hand still held him bound to the stream of time.

With an air of having done the same thing a thousand times before link set off with only the clothes on his back, his pouch of weapon hard won during the last seven years, and the Master Sword, as that was all he owned (his hylian shield had been lost during an unfortunate run in with an unexpected like-like).

Tonight Link decided he would try Kakariko Village. Something there was bound to be open and in need of service; in exchange for a bed of course. He walked morosely to the bridge and stairway that would lead to his destination.

From behind he could hear the foot steps of a child; running. The sky above was darkening and the gate to Hyrule Castle Town was lowering from it's previous position. He turned; behind him the sound was getting closer, deafening him. A small green hatted head poked over the hills. From the north end of the field he was watching himself at the age of ten, run from the south end and to the gate. A white horse with two riders galloped out.

_'Not again'_ he smacked the side of his head and shook it vigorously as if trying to move things around. When here reopened his eyes, things were back to normal. The gate was closed, nobody was running for their life, and he was the only one outside.

This vision was not the first of its kind for Link; indeed he experienced them at least twice a day. And on reflection he decided that was probably why he could never hold a steady job.

What he was seeing was himself slipping in and out of the proper flow of time. Visions from days gone and days yet to be, dancing waltz's of dizzying misconceptions. Constantly the stream of time washed him up and down it's shores, only to maroon him in the same point in time. He could never be sure exactly were that was however. As far as he could tell, Zelda would Seventeen currently.

His journey to Kakariko village continued. A weighty feeling of something big beginning gripped his tired heart as he climbed the stairs. Mentally, for that was the only way he could, he was screaming for release.

The next morning found Link sleeping behind a monument in the Kakariko graveyard. Not that he minded. Graveyards had ceased to scare him after his experience at the bottom of the well. Nothing above ground could be worse than that.

He stretched, listening to the sounds of children pulling their moms to the grocer. Yes, Kakariko had certainly grown over the years. Without the threat of Gannondorf hanging over their heads, the citizens had built and developed the village into a large town. He pulled his boot into a better position on his foot and straightened his wrinkled tunic. After wearing the same thing for seven years (Not because he had to, but because he was so attached to it) he was surprised to find that it had lasted. Even though it was patched in places, and he had had to stitch it back together in a few places, it was still as good as ever. His white leggings were in the same condition, however, they did have some spots of slight discolorment, where he hadn't quite been able to wash the blood completely out.

His walk into the main town was brisk and Link almost felt like a normal teenager… almost. The Master Sword strapped to his back slightly ruined the effect. Since the incident in hyrule castle town seven years ago he had kept the hilt and scabbard bound in a nondescript cloth. If the villagers didn't know what was there, life would be easier for everyone.

The entrance from the graveyard into the town had changed dramatically, because although it was roughly the same shape and size, it was clearly made of stone; just like the rest of the city. Gone was the velvet carpet of green grass that met the feet of those just leaving their houses. Cobble streets replaced the gardens and fences of yesteryear.

With a sigh, Link wondered if there was a legal limit to how many times one can sigh in a day. He wondered off, between the stalls, listening and not listening to just about every conversation. The streets were crowded, as they always were this time of the morning. For the most part, it was only women, as the men had all gone to their respective jobs. Link felt spectacularly alone, surrounded by what he could never have.

As he ventured link became aware of a smell child, trying to get the attention of any adult that would heed his, all ignored him. They brushed him off like one flicks a bug away. Link watched the boy's progress, appalled at the Towns people's attitude towards the young boy, until the child's trail came directly to links feet.

The boy tugged on his patched tunic with a rushed sentiment. Desperation clung to his bright green eyes.

Link took in the boys ragged appearance, he couldn't have been more then six; judging form his missing front teeth that is. Link nodded to show he was listening.

"Sir, my mother needs help. Can you come help her?" another nod was enough to satisfy the boy who immediately pulled Link down a number of cobbled streets and a few dirt ones as well.

They ended up in the outskirts of the city, where a cottage was standing, seemingly proud to be the only building made of wood.

Link smiled as the child ran to the back, where his mother was struggling with an axe and some wood. He followed. The woman chopping wood was young but the wrinkles lining her face proved that she had lived a hard life. He stepped to her side and took the axe out of her hands. She startled for a moment, and then she too smiled. The chopping resumed, now a quicker, more steady sound then before.

"Thank you." She sat in a chair on her porch. He nodded, wishing once again that he could speak.

"What is your name stranger? Few people ever regard a small boy." Link stopped chopping and turned to her, a sad gleam in his eyes. Then he pulled the cloth covered master sword from his back and set it scabbard and all next to the porch, he then resumed chopping. The widows eyes were drawn to the Polished Blue handle.

"That's a fine looking sword, it looks almost familiar I can't place it, but I'm sure I've seen one like it before. Where did you get it?"

Link gave her no response to her question, but continued chopping wood. He had given her all the answer he could by putting the Master Sword at her feet.

"Fine then keep your secrets, but know that you have my gratitude, whoever you are."

She stepped in side for a time. He continued, until it seemed that the scenery around him changed, a garden replaced the weeds and the broken down shed was repaired. Behind him a solider stood at the gate next to a heavily pregnant woman. From the look of Confusion the Women was not familiar with the man at the gate. That spoke a few words. In the man's hand was a note which he gave it to the woman and left. In his wake a scream of sadness and overwhelming grief pierced the air. She turned, Link got a look at her tear sodden face, and he understood. Clutched in her hand was The notice of her husbands death on the battle field.

The woman he was chopping wood for was a widow; a young woman with a small child. He turned to the house to see her standing there, a tray with a jug of juice on it and a look of surprise on her face.

Grief rolled down her face in hot tears. Her hands trembled so much that the Juice she had brought out spilled onto her tray. Her knees gave way; her fall sent the dented glasses and liquid skittering across the porch. In a sobbing heap she lay. It was then that link realized what had occurred. She too had been pulled into the steam of time. Into her past, six years ago.

Link desperately wished he could explain. Every time this happened with someone else around, he wished he could, but his mouth refused to let him. It was times like these that he cursed the childhood illness that had rendered him mute.

Silently, as always, he picked up the wood he had chopped and stacked it neatly next to her porch. They would not be cold this winter, unlike him. He hefted the Master Sword and replaced the belt that held it in its proper Position. He turned to leave.

"Wait, please. I don't understand." He gave a look that clearly stated, 'neither do I' and turned, walked through the gate and never looked back.

Link walked back into the busy streets of Kakariko, the widow still weighing heavily on his mind.

'_This is ridiculous. I need to stop the visions. It's bad enough I can't speak. I don't need to scare everyone I met as well.'_ His thoughts turned to Zelda, and their last minutes together, as they usually did after he pulled someone else into the visions with him.

_'If only she hadn't sent me back!'_ but even though he wished things were different for himself, he knew it was greedy and that it really wouldn't change anything The people of Hyrule didn't deserve to live under the black domain of Ganon.

He walked on. Not really watching where he was going. Link's thoughts seemed hung up on the young widow and her son and didn't take in his surroundings at all; that is until he ran headlong into a Hylian solider.

Linklooked up from the ground, startled. The solider seemed to be dazed as well, but it didn't take him long to realize into whom he had run into. Nor, it seemed, did it take long for his partner as well.

"Arrest him!" the guards around them looked up sharply, not quite understanding why their commanding officer had told them to do so, but carried out the order anyway.

The soldiers hauled him to his feet and into a carriage, which was situated at the entrance to hyrule field. Two officers stepped in with him, and the journey began.

The carriage it's self was more like a cell on wheels. It had the basics, such as wheels and doors, but the bars dampened the whole effect. The chains that had been bound around his writs didn't help matters.

They swayed and bumped, but Link's eyes never left the soldiers faces; a fact that caused nervous little twitches to spark every now and then from the soldiers. Still they traveled on. By the direction they were traveling, Link guessed they were headed for Hyrule Castle Town; which was the last place he wanted to go.

They arrived at a small squatish building; the police head quarters. Link was dragged out and into the building before he could even comprehend what was going on. However Link managed to seek out the palace and confirm that he was indeed in Hyrule Castle Town. Inside, rows of cells and shelves cluttered up the small space. A man behind the only desk looked up as they walked in.

"Yes?" his squeaky voice almost gave Link a headache. The soldier holding his arms bullied him forward.

"This young man in the blasphemer from all those years ago, he matches the description perfectly. We apprehended him in Kakariko village." The man behind the desk stood, and walked to them. Griping Links chin in his hands, he examined his face.

"You mean the boy seven years ago?" The pitch of Lieutenants voice was more annoying then anything Link had ever encountered before.

The men nodded.

"So you are telling me, this teenager is supposed to be the same teenager who was meant to be arrested seven years ago?" more nods

"I don't suppose it occurred to you the that boy, would be in his mid twenties did you? This boy is clearly in his teens and could not possibly be the same person." The series of words that didn't quite string together left the lieutenant's mouth. The Man's voice rose to such a high pitched squeak that Link found himself flinching

"Are you suggesting that this boy simply stopped growing and has looked the same for the last seven years?" mentally, Link was laughing his head off. It seemed as though his luck had definitely turned around.

The men assembled, looked at each other, and let Link's arms go. In an embarrassed mob they left the room silently. Link was left with the police chief.

"Sorry about that. He has been over obsessed with catching that boy ever since he was found here seven years ago. That boy killed his brother. Sad really. If that kid hadn't been a blasphemer, I would want him on the team. He took out eight of my best men." He plodded back to his desk and sat.

"You are free to go, sorry about the mix up." His attention returned to the books he had previously been reading. Link watched for a moment and then left through the same door he had come in through.

The streets of Hyrule Castle Town were nothing like he remembered. He meandered through the town he barely knew and wondered if anything in Hyrule had remained the same in the years he had been avoiding it. Although it still had a few familiar edifices, such as the Temple of Time and Hyrule Castle of course.

Now that he was here, he might as well see what was going on, Link reasoned. After all, the crowds of people had to be here for a reason. Link's eyes fell to the center of the town square, which now was occupied by a large fountain. Immediately he felt his eyes slide into something else.

The town was brown and scorched, everything was dead, redeads moaned their sorry lives away, and all the people in the square were screaming in horror. A sudden sickening notion settled into his mind.

'_I have dragged an entire city into the past with me! This has to stop!'_ Link shook his head vigorously to dispel times river from the overflow it had managed to attain. As soon as Link was sure that the Timeline had been reseparated, he ran. Ran as fast as his legs would carry him.

His sense of direction didn't appear to be working, but still his legs pounded on until he reached something he recognized. The stairs at the Temple of Time. He collapsed on them and lay sobbing near the door.

_'I cannot let this happen anymore. Something has to be done.these visions will bet worse, maybe net time it will come out for real, Eventually it won't be just a vision. People will get hurt if I cannot stop these visions from overflowing out of Time's river.'_ His limbs were shaking with exertion and his head was pounding its own beat.

_'I have to stop this, but what can I do?'_ Link's eyes searched the heavens, looking for any form of salvation that would grace him with the end he wished would come quickly. Nothing was there. Nothing ever was.

The Goddesses had forsaken him as soon as his task had been completed. Miserably, he let his eyes float down the Hylian skyline and on to the castle. Suddenly it all seemed to fit. He knew what he had to do.

'_The only way to put things back together is to take back what the hero of time is meant to carry.'_ He stood, using the door as support.

_'There is only one way to fix this. I must steal the Ocarina of Time.'_

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Ok, this is the end of the next chapter. Tell me what you think. To my wonderful reviewers, thanks you for the support. Here let me thank you individually.

**Shadow link50**- I appreciate your review, and am pleased to hear that you want me to continue.

**Too-lazy-to-sign-in**- No Zelda does not remember that she sent him back; she doesn't even remember the alternate timeline. Link is the only one to remember. As he was the only one not affected by the ocarinas song. Link is mute because of a childhood illness. We will most likely learn more about that latter, like around chapter seven when link comes into more contact with Zelda.

**Garnet Runestar**- I am flattered that you wish you had thought of it. And yes link will be eternally seventeen. It causes some interesting things to happen in the story. And it's not that he doesn't want the hero of time to appear per say. It's just that he is a very religious man and he doesn't want anyone to disrespect them. And when the hero of time appears it usually is because he will be needed in the time to come. So the Hero of Time is a serious matter.

Ok, I would also like to ask…Is this making any sense? Tell me if it's not or if it is. Tell me what I can do to improve my writing. How is my sense of place? And my timing? Do my descriptions make you see what I am trying to portray? **Revised 3/23/05**

_Review!_


	4. This is what nobles do for fun? Good Gri...

And here was go again. This is the next installment of the price was paid.

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_This is what nobles do for fun? Good grief!_

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After his moment of self despair on the steps of the Temple of Time he began the more logical aspect of his realizations. First of all, there was no way he would be able to sneak into the palace and steal the Ocarina of Time. A teenager with no reason to be at the palace was too conspicuous.

Silently (as if he could do it any other way) he plotted. Each plan as unlikely as the last. In frustration he sat back giants the stone walls of the temple of time. Where he decided he would be safe enough to sleep. Link was sure the priests wouldn't mind (He had flashed the master sword rather obviously as a strengthening back bone to this idea.) He was pretty sure the men behind the stone doors would leave him alone.

A graveyard of paper swarmed around him, and it was growing steadily larger as he threw ideas away. Try as he might, none of his ideas were practical, and now he was just getting ridiculous. His last idea, mailing himself to Zelda, had been one of the milder ones he had had. Frustrated, and in need of something else to occupy his mind with for a time, Link decided to walk the streets of hyrule castle town.

Outside it was a clear blue sky, which was not to say that the town was any more agreeable then the night before, but at least the sky was pretty. Link slid the Master Sword's scabbard into a more comfortable position on his back and began a leisurely walk.

He might have been wrong, but there seemed to be a lot more excitement in the main square than there was the night before. Colors of all varieties and hues paraded on the costumes of people he was sure had appeared over night. Wading through the people he managed to catch glimpses of tents that had also sprung up over night.

_'What is going on? Surely I would have heard of something this big?'_

Link's wanderings could not have been complete without an ice cream, so he discreetly stole one. As he licked it he ran face first into the answer of his ponderings.

_'The Suitors' Competition? What is this?'_

Link's interest was not unnoticed. An elderly man came up from behind him, and chummily swung his arm around his neck. Choking and unable to say anything about it Link tried to keep himself up. He protested only by the gurgling noises coming from his throat.

"Da suitors comp! What a show id'll be drsh time! All sorts of youngin' dandies to court de princess by slaugh'erin' each 'ther i's mazin'. No player ever comesss twice. Not out of cow'rdice mind you, but its hard ter figh' when yer dead!" links head reeled with the old mans alcohol soaked breath and he couldn't quite keep himself from falling over from the stink. His feet fell from under him and he lay sprawled on the street reeling from the smell of alcohol.

Above him the old man cackled in his drunken manner, spilling drink on the pavement.

"To bad i's only for dem royals! I'd like a crack at 'em folks! Yes sir. And a prize to bea' a nigh' with Lady Aluria!" even if he could speak link wouldn't have had to ask who lady Aluria was. Her name alone led him to think of a cheap street prostitute.

"How'd you like that! da princess herself as a prize. Now dere's a piece o' love meat if I 'er saw one!" Link was profoundly grateful that the man did not elaborate on what a piece of love meat was.

The man guffawed to himself for a few minutes and then wobbled his way on down the street, cheering and punching children like no tomorrow. On the ground, Link lay stunned, trying to comprehend what the heck he had just heard.

_'So know I know, it's a competition for those of royal blood, who beat each other up to the death, for the hand of Princess Zelda. Right then.'_ He got up, dusted himself off, and began to formulate what must have been the worst plan he had ever conceived.

The next morning before dawn Link was poised out side a tent. Inside he could hear the nobleman collecting weapons and such that one would need if they were going to practice before anyone was up.

Link had watched the contestants spare the day before (A tradition that all constants participated in. It was looked upon as a friendly way to display the competitors abilities). And this nobleman was the worst of the lot. Logically, Link knew this would lead the others to underestimate him; which happened to be exactly why Link chose this man as the one he would knockout and switch places with.

Stealthily he pulled the tent flap open and slipped in. The noble, Sir Llewellyn of Artemisia, was polishing an already glittering sword. Even by looking at it from a distance Link could see it was balanced exactly the wrong way. And had been designed to look good, and not to fight with. By the looks of things, the nobleman would have been killed in the competition anyway.

It was not hard to slink up behind the man and bash him over the head. In fact it was ridiculously easy. Link almost had to check to make sure there were no security spells to stop the very thing he was trying to do. But no, he had checked yesterday. Nothing was here to stop anyone from taking the noble from his own bed; which was lavishly sprawling with over adorned pillows, and overstuffed comforters that gave the impression of one large pouf cushion you could use as a good sized raft.

As soon as he was sure the gentleman was unconscious, Link set about the task of tying him up and putting him in said bed. In was not difficult as the mattress consisted of down feathers and therefore sunk under the man's weight. Link arranged the duvet to make sure he was covered and then searched the innumerable parcels of luggage in the tent for a suitable thing to wear. He wanted to appear like Llewellyn, but not so overly dressed that it was difficult to move.

An hour later, the sun was just climbing over the east mountains, and link was placing the finishing touches on his costume. He had found a silken tunic of white to go under a doublet of green. He replaced his belt with a fancy acid etched black one (on which he slipped his accessory and weapon pouch) and replaced the belt holding the Master Sword with one of the same. Under it all a set of white leggings kept his arms and legs covered; much better then his own patched and dirty leggings. He also had managed to find a find a nice pair of black boots with silver fastenings up the sides.

On his back a new shield was slung. Not as nice as the mirror shield he had once borrowed from the spirit temple, but it would do. Over his arms he equipped his trusted gauntlets, he had been shocked to find out that Llewellyn did not own a pair. But with all that, he still felt naked. He didn't need to think long to figure out what was missing. That was all it took to make him decide on the next piece he would add to his outfit. More searching yielded a forest green flop cap with a rather becoming white feather, to match his doublet. After looking in the mirror, even he had to admit he looked rather dashing. He was also pleased that he had managed to dress himself in the greens he so loved.

The final piece to the masterpiece was a white mask that he had found in a box all to it's self. It was bedecked with jewels and glittered spectacularly. Candidly Link would never have worn it by his own choosing, but one fact remained. He was not Sir Llewellyn of Artemisia. Without a mask this would little detail would have been glaringly obvious. Other particulars, such as hair, could not be changed, but Link was grateful that the young noble also had blonde hair.

With a final once over, he finally felt he was ready. He was appreciative that the competition was meant to start today, and that he would not have to pass himself off as the clumsy gentlemen for long. Otherwise he would have messed the thing up royally and would have ruined his chance at getting so close to the Ocarina so effortlessly. But still, he was sorrowful about the young men he would have to kill in order to get to the prize.

'Maybe I can just wound them so they can't fight any longer. That would be better. But if I have to…I will. The Stream of Time is not steady, especially with me running around in the body of a seventeen year old forever. It needs me to return its flow to a more stable route. I have to do this for everyone.'

Link sighed a heavy sort of death dirge sigh and squared his courage. The hilt of the Master Sword shown brightly over his right shoulder, finally free from its dirty wound cloths, reminding him of his never ending duty as the Hero of Time.

Outside an excited ripple of anticipation soared through the towns' people. Those intending on getting good seats had gotten up early and had already been on their way shortly after Link had knocked Llewellyn out. The excited people outside currently were stragglers. Link knew that soon the guards would be coming to escort him to the arena were he was to fight for his life and the hand of the princess.

And yet, he was not as nervous as he knew the other men would be. After all Link had lived several life times just by jumping back and forth through time. He had already had decades of sword practice, and a lean teenaged body in which to use those techniques. In a way he almost felt like he was cheating, of course he had cheated to get in to begin with. If knocking someone out and stealing their place wasn't cheating, then he had been lied to about what cheating meant.

The only thing Link was truly worried about was the River of Time, if it chose just the wrong moment to pull him into its embrace, then he would display to the whole crowd just why he had not died of injury during his quest (not that any of them knew about his quest, of course).

_'As long as I can keep myself from receiving any major injuries, everything should be fine. Either way, I will be the last constant standing.'_ Of this he was absolutely positive.

The next hour passed in abhorrent slowness, although Link didn't feel jittery. It was just after breakfast time when an escort Hylian soldiers came into his tents. They assemble themselves in honor guard style, and saluted to him. To Link it looked as though they were paying their final respects. He was appalled, but with the skills the really Llewellyn had displayed he should not have been surprised that the guards already thought he was going to die. Of course, they did not know what Link knew.

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The arena erupted in a deafening roar as the fifteen brave men were marched onto the field. As soon as they were lined up, Link glanced down the line and saw that everyone else was wearing a mask just as shiny and gaudy as his.

_'Well, that explains why this mask had its own box.'_

All the other men were dressed in non-functional outfits of dazzling make. Clearly they were trying to out do each other in the 'impressive appearance' category. Along with this, Link noticed that they all had ornately decorated scabbards hanging saucily at their thighs, which gave a gallant look but otherwise was a ridiculous way to hold a weapon. It was so easy to get tripped up in your own equipment like that. In that moment Link became that much more appreciative of what his quest had taught him.

With a great heave, the king hefted himself from off his thrown and up to the announcing podium.

"I now declare this, the 740th assembly of the Suitors Competition, Open!"

This declaration was met with more cheering then links sensitive ears could comprehend. He flinched slightly; the men beside him eyed him with an antipathy that rivaled that of Ganondorf's. Clearly they had already begun to think of him as dead.

"Thank you all for coming from you comfortable homes to see this spectacular event! Now without further ado, I will announce the brave men willing to give up their lives in pursuit of Hyrule's beautiful Princess Zelda!" the men looked nervy, and Link could only guess what they were upset about. Something he was not prepared for was going to happen.

"Lord Eldon Merscot of Aratham!" screams blasted the arena.

And Eldon stepped forward, he took a deep breath and performed a flashy sword spin that sent tendril's of sparkling stars flying throughout the stadium.

_'Now I understand, we are meant to display an ability of flashy origin.'_

But having the intent down was only the half of the show, he had precious little time to come up with something impressive to display.

"Baron Eadoin Tynui of Aradia!" another round of applause rent to air.

The baron lumbered forward and displayed an attempt to juggle daggers. A failed attempt, as he only managed to land one in his remaining eye and killed himself instantly. The matter was glossed over and the king was on to the then next contender quickly.

"Duke Talandiel Garlatia of Mesiadonoly!" and the list went on. Link found himself ignoring the displays for the most part. It seemed like forever until Link heard his stolen name called.

"Sir Llewellyn Tiluvian of Artemisia!"

Link straightened his back and marched forward. He had decided by the fourth gentlemen what he would display and only needed the proper amount of space. Ten yards out, Link decided he was far enough, the crowd was growing restless, and he knew they were annoyed with him. After all, Llewellyn had not been a favorite to win. The crowd most obviously wanted him to get his little bit on so that the final man could have his turn.

Standing in a steadying pose he held the red glowing crystal high over his head. Mentally he was chanting in the goddesses' language. The crystal exploded in an extravagant and blistering heat, which would have burned anyone else. He tossed the crystal from hand to hand and then pulled himself into the magic calling steps he knew so well. The familiar ball of flaming power emerged from his body and encircled him. Had any foes been around they would have been fried to a crispy crunch.

If Link could talk he would have shouted '_Din's fine'_ but alas he could not. The crowd was left to wonder what had just happened. Moments passed, and then crowd hit the roof.

Link managed to hide a pleased smile and walked back to the line of shocked gentlemen. Clearly, they had a lot to reconsider.

Once the king succeeded in subduing the multitude he announced the last man,

"Earl Cordorallan Lendethial of Thalassa!"

Link watched as the man strode to the center of the field and managed to summon an illusory lightning storm, just as impressive as his own Din's fire. And even though the swarm of people was impressed by the Earl's Display, Link could tell what he was truly looking at. This man wielded no magical power, he was merely projecting an image, but the audience clearly could not tell the difference.

Once again the order had to be restored and the king cleared his throat into the magnifying spell several times.

"With our contenders introduced, I will now proceed with the events they will valiantly tackle." He motioned to the far end of the stadium were a track of some sort was assembled.

"The first of three events is simply a foot race. In order to win, the competitor must be the first to break to ribbon across the finish."

_'Not hard, I can handle that.'_ Link thought, rather relived that at least one of the events would be easy.

"Second, our brave young men must face their worst fear. Individually they will encounter the thing that turns their stomach turn mush, that which makes them cringe in horror and they must defeat it." This came as no shock to the men lined up; it seemed that they had already been told what the events were.

Link only had a moment to ponder what his worse fear was when the king began to announce the final event in the battle for the hand of Princess Zelda.

"Lastly, these valiant gentlemen will fight each other, in tournament format… to the DEATH!" the screams of the crowd almost deafened link and he wanted desperately to shove his fingers in his ears to smother the sound.

Mutely, Link wondered what the towns' people did for entertainment when they couldn't see nobles massacre each other, but by then the group of now fourteen were being herded to the race track.

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Ok, this will be the end of chapter three, I was not intending on ending it here, but with one thing and another, this chapter would have been ridiculously long. And so this is the end of it. Now, how about dropping me a line regarding how I am doing in my writing. I would like to know. If it's bad…tell me! How can I get better if I am not told what I can to fix my problems? Well, anyway. I hope you have liked this chapter. I am rather proud of time myself. And is the old drunk man's accent to hard to understand? I did try. If it is tell me and I will fix it. Thanks! **Revised 4/06/05.**

**Shadow link50**- I am absolutely thrilled to see that you could stomach my story and were able to review again! This means you came back to read more updates! Hooray! If you have anymore questions, just ask! I will answer what I can!

**Frodobaggins87**- I have an interesting plot? Really? You just made my day! Thank you! I will update soon. I write through the night to get chapters up as soon as possible.

**Garnet Runestar**- Al right I have to know, what does Garnet Runestar of the Book mean? Because I can't figure it out. Ya those visions are wicked, and they only get worse. Indeed, link is going to steal the ocarina of time. Although he is not sure how yet.

**Super Davis**- well, I try to catch some of those capitalizations, but it gets to the point where I am like, good grief and just bag the whole thing. So I will try to fix that. Yes link is mute, I hadn't thought of trying to give him a voice yet, but who know. After all it is really hard to write a mute link. I sometimes catch myself writing his answer. But I catch it in time and fix it.

_Review!_


	5. The Men from the Boys

Right then here is the next part. I really need to think of something to say up here on this little note thing, because I would think it is getting rather boring. What should I up here? Well, Um…I. Oh good heavens I don't know what to put here.

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_The men from the boys_

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From far away the race track looked safe enough, but as the group got closer Link could see the random bursts of flame that seemed to sprout from the outside edges of it. Even with the threat of being burnt to a crisp, Link was not afraid.

He stood along with the other contestants, at their starting points, which where designed to be diagonal so as to be fair. Link was given the middle ring, or rather one of the inside rings. He was glad that he had not been placed on the outside tracks, which were situated right next to the flamethrowers. Not that his lane was much better.

Lying in the center of the middle lanes were some unfriendly looking spikes, which Link assumed they would be required to jump over. Down further it looked as though the track cracked into several small pieces. Over the pavement it looked like a gushing stream of some thick substance that was burning holes in the concrete. Link was pretty sure he had seen that sickly green liquid before, usually around redeads, and it was most likely acidic.

Next to him Lord Eldon Merscot of Aratham and Earl Cordorallan Lendethial of Thalassa were stretching, or at least moving into positions that resembled stretches. Their costumes restricted their movement quite a bit.

Earl Cordorallan was something of an enigma to Link. His skills in illusion were something to be reckoned with and link was not going to lose just because he under estimated the Earl's power.

The other men were sizing each other up, now that they were on the track and could see what the obstacles would be; they now knew what to judge on. Link tried his best to look thoroughly scared and nervous, but he was positive his eyes were betraying him.

With only moments to go, the competitors lined up. They were to run in full gear, not that Link had a problem with that. He had carried all his possessions with him for more years then he could properly count, and had run with full gear from worse things than flamethrowers and spikes.

"Are the contenders ready?" a yell rose from the other men. Link focused his eyes on the track ahead of him, and lowered himself into a good sprinting position. His knuckles crunched the ground as he used them to hold himself up. The others gave him looks of confusion and disgust. They all stood tall and proud, the perfect image of spoiled nobles. Had they been running against someone like themselves, they may have stood a chance.

"Runners take you marks, Ready…" A loud echoing firecracker echoed in the arena and link shot off like a arrow. The others ran to, but their starts had not been as good. Link was in the lead and he knew it.

The first 50 yards of track was purely to separate the men from the overweight moms boys and it did its job spectacularly. Maeron Alastair was just behind him with Emrys Lyneth just behind him. Talandiel Garlatia was holding up a steady last.

First came the spike hurdles, which link managed to jump over just fine. Atticus Fairfax managed to lacerate his inner thigh, but kept running anyway. For the most part the men passed unscathed. The next obstacle, a green river of something unidentifiable stopped the men it their tracks. A piercing moan seemed to hold them in place. Puzzled three men tried to simply ignore it and continue on.

Link was the only one to realize what was coming his way, carefully his relaxed and pushed the spell back to the owner; a redead that had passed over the river, along with his fellows.

Free of his bondage link pulled the master sword from its scabbard and allowed the redead to become acquainted with the pointy end of it. Its scream of burning pain silenced the crowd. Reeling with the evil destroying power the sword possessed it died in a twitching heap impaled on links sword. With a determined fire burning in his eyes link performed a spin attack and managed to slice the three redeads around him in half. Mortally wounded they lay bleeding on the ground. Links sword quickly dispatched the others and he was off before anyone managed to pull themselves out of the redeads spell.

Running with his sword ready, Link hacked his way through the jungle of thorny vines in his path and dodged a dodongo. The trail then led him up a large hill and on to a flat plain. He halted there. The blue ground unnerved him.

It was too quite. Link didn't like it. Cautiously he edged a few inches forward, sliding slightly. A spurt of wild blue fire froze an icy tendril across his path. Quickly he glanced back to the others, who where running from the flames of the Dodongo. His resolve was made up and he pulled from his sack two iron pieces the same shape and size as his feet. With a practiced grace and ease he fashioned them to his feet.

Link stood and looked back once more. The other men had dispatched the dodongo, but Fallon Ebony of Thea had become the first man to fall during this event. Returning to his task, Link squared his shoulders and ran. Sheets of ice followed his frenzied scamper, behind him he could hear men slipping and falling. Arlais Xythia broke his arm, and crawled his way down the ice floor; truth fully he was doing better than the others who were still trying to run like they had seen Link do.

He paused for a moment and removed his iron boots. After crossing the ice field, Link wondered what could possibly be coming next. The wall fast coming on was undulating in a sickening formation of jiggling jelly. As he came forward, Link hear the tell tale gastric noises and knew what was coming forward.

'Like-likes!' in a lightning move he managed to vault the wall and continue to a simple vine covered cliff. He scaled it with ease and sprinted the final 70 yards before the men even managed to find out what the undulating wall in from of them was.

The winning ribbon broke easily and he pulled himself to a stop, breathing at an almost normal pace. Just beyond the finish a judge congratulated him and directed him to a place were he could relax. He gave the group struggling with the like-likes a glance before entering the Competitors Tent.

_'You'd think that after years of doing the competition, that competitors would choose to wear clothes in which they could move better. You'd think that…but you'd be wrong.'_ Link snickered to himself.

He watched the men run in their heavy clothing and allowed himself a small smile. It felt good to smile.

_'Is has been too long'_ he decided _'since I have had anything to laugh about._'

By the time Link looked up again they were all sprinting across the finish line. Cordorallan Lendethial had come in second, and he did not appear to be happy about it. Behind him, Emrys Lyneth and Elyri Farathia made third and fourth. Talandiel Garlatia and Arien Parpalorian almost tied for fifth, but Talandiel managed to throw himself over the finish line before Arien. Faolan Medwin was a clear seventh with Elroy Maeve, Maeron Alastair, and Arlais Xythia a close eighth ninth and tenth. Arlais' broken arm was bound immediately after his crossing the finish line. Eldon Merscot and Mathalan Elwyn brought up the rear in Eleventh and Twelfth. Atticus Fairfax limped his way across the finish in dead last, He was sent to the medical tent with Arlais for immediate attention.

The only man to die was Fallon Ebony of Thea. They honored him with a moment of silence, which ended with the crowd screaming cheers again. Link didn't think he would ever get used to the crazed ovations of the crowd.

The other men were soon in the tent with him. They all looked put out, like someone who has just been beaten up by their little sister. Link was given a wide berth, which he didn't mind in the least. They assembled quietly and set about doing something that Link couldn't see, but that didn't really bother him. He reclined in his seat and rested his eyes, waiting for the next event to begin.

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Over an hour later, when he opened his eyes, he noticed twelve completely different pairs of clothes were sitting in from of him. A slight thrill of panic zipped through his body, but upon closer inspection he came to realize that the nobles had simply changed in to more suitable clothes while he had been sleeping. They all were decidedly not looking at Link and relaxing in one way or another.

"So," Emrys Lyneth began, he seemed to have nothing to say and stopped talking.

"Does any one have a clue what they will face?" Elroy Maeve took up exactly where Emrys had left off. A grumble of noise penetrated the silence.

"Well, I know that mine will be some sort skulltulla. They give me the willies." Eldon Merscot seemed to have no qualms with admitting that his worse fear was a spider.

Atticus Fairfax had not been so forth coming, but Faolan Medwin managed to force it out of him after he promised to reveal his worse fear: which happened to be WallMasters.

"Bees" Atticus began, "I am deathly allergic to bees. When I get stung I swell up all red. It's a gross sight."

Mild chatter made the tent feel a whole lot more comfortable, but Link had to admit there was still a guarded feeling to the room. The general rule of the competition had always been not to get to know each other, that way you would have no misgivings about killing each other at the end. However, with the coronation of the new king the rule was changed. Although the announcement would still be to the death, you only had to put your opponent out of commission, if in doing so you happened to kill him, so be it. The lifting of this law released the competitors from the guilt they would have after winning (a problem that had caused the downfall of many good kings in the past).

"Me, I know what mine'll be" began Arien Parpalorian. "Some sort of really good warrior woman. Girls scare me worse then anything." Laughter filled the room.

"Then you are in the wrong competition" joked Talandiel Garlatia, who had admitted that his fear was sea monsters. The fact that he had never seen one seemed to be moot.

The other men shared what they thought would be their worst fears. The only other man to stay quite was Cordorallan Lendethial. Still, Link got the sense of something not being right with him He reeked of something strangely familiar and frightening.

Cordorallan was sitting in another corner, watching the events unfold with a dissatisfied sort of interest. When the conversation turned to weapons, he shied himself away and ignored to group.

"My sword was given to me by the king of Ilythia!" Mathalan Elwyn cried, as he pulled his rapier from its scabbard and thrust it into the middle of the circle for everyone to see. Clearly he was very fond of his sword.

"Well, it's not nearly as impressive… but my slogert has gotten me through some pretty tough battles. I trust it more then my own mother." But even though he said it wasn't as impressive Emrys Lyneth's sword was beautifully crafted. Link caught himself admiring the sword for its exquisite design. He was so moved by the sword,s appearance that he stood and came over to get a better look. Pulling the sword from its owner's hands he gave it a few appreciative swings, flipped it to test its balance and returned it with a nod of approval.

"What about you Llewellyn? You seem awfully quiet today. Show us your sword. Yesterday you bragged of its greatness. Let's see what is looks like up close." Elyri Farathia sat back in his chair satisfied with the challenge. The other men seemed to agree. Link gave them a condescending look which clearly said 'you have got to be kidding'. He sighed and with a quick motion that startled the people next to him, he pulled the Master Sword from the scabbard, gave it a flipping swing and held it out for all to see.

A gasp of Horror was heard from somewhere in the tent, but Link couldn't see who it was. The others looked at the sword awed by its perfection.

"I'll bet you never have to sharpen it!" declared Atticus Fairfax, who seemed to be an excitable fellow. He was the kind of man that link would have liked to befriend had things been different.

"Look at that mark, isn't that…what's it called. It has something to do with Hylian religion. The Triforce! That's it. Isn't that the Triforce?"

"Indeed it is." Cordorallan rose from his place and walked to the center of the tent, were Link was still holding the Master Sword out.

"But one must wonder how a man from Artemisia managed to get his hands on a Hylian holy sword." He reached forward and grasped the hilt. A hiss of burning flesh emitted from Cordorallan's hand which he pulled away sharply. He looked from his hand, now a lump of melted flesh, to Link several times.

"Very well then, if that is how it will be." He held his hand so link could clearly see it and whispered a few words. In front of their eyes Cordorallan's hand re-formed itself. It looked as though nothing had happened to it. Link raised an eyebrow, but made no move to show that the gesture had shocked him. The others, however, jumped out of their skin.

"Does this not disturb you? The others can hardly look at my hand now." Link cocked his head to the side. Enraged Cordorallan stamped his foot and turned to leave. From the tent flap he whispered angry words of condemnation,

"They will see what I see in the end, I know what you are!" and he was gone. Those left in the tent looked at each other and between them they couldn't decide what had just happened, so that did what all good nobles do; they made themselves forget that it had ever happened.

Link however; could not forget what he had just seen. He was beginning to think Cordorallan Lendethial was more dangerous than some one powerful in the Competition. Something about the Master Sword (other then the fact that it had just burned his hand off) in Links position had definitely freaked Cordorallan out to the point of displaying his healing abilities. Cordorallan was more then the rest of them had bargained for. And whatever it was, Link intended on finding out how to stop it before it was too late.

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Well this originally was going to have the whole first day of the competition, but when it was finished my new Beta sent me an Email of desperation, too…much… was what she told me. It turns out if you send a Beta 36 pages of typing they have nervous break down. Sorry about that! Anyway, I have shortened it considerably and will be posting it in small doses. Be aware that in the coming chapters there is a lot of blatant and uncaring Character death. That you to all those who reviewed the previous chapter. The reviews really brighten my day and make writing worth it.

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**Shadow Link 50**- Thank you for your continued support! I hope you liked this chapter as much as you anticipated.

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**Garnet Runestar**- I am updating as quickly as possible. If you are upset about my updating take a look at your own stories! J/K. You know I only tease you because I know you can take it. By the way. If you were wondering, TierraL and I were the ones that ate the last of your pumpkin roll. I figure it's safer to tell you ever the internet, that way you can't kill me. ( you would have no physical evidence to show mom) Hehehe….

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**Lucifel-san**- well, I am pleased to learn that you think my story is awesome. I have always pondered what happens to the characters after the game/ movie, because if you think about it, their story is not over yet. I thank you for your interest.

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**Darklink231**- Awesome? Really? Thanks! I hope you like the rest of the story just as much!

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**FrodoBaggins87**- Thank you for your willingness to be my beta. I was flattered beyond belief when I saw your review. I am sorry the last version of this I sent you was to big, but I hope this is a more expectable size. Thank you for your support.

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**Ranma hibiki**- No the contestants didn't tell the king what hey are afraid of, You will see that in chapter 6 I think. You will see what happens. And as for links worse fear… you will just have to wait.

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**Jedidragoon**- I am glad you liked it. Thanks you for the review.

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**Dan**- just so you know, I typed a 38 page chapter just for you, but when I sent to my beta, it just about killed her. So, I hope these chapters in quick succession is enough for you.

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That is all, Until next time…._REVIEW!_


	6. That which he most Feared

All Right then, here is chapter Six which previously was part of Chapter Five, But we can't have everything we want. I hope you enjoy this, because it has taken a lot of character revisiting to get it right. I tell you, it is impossible to write a main character that is completely mute! There have been so many times that I have thought of a great scene and have had to abandon it because Link can't speak! (In my story at least.) But I will continue anyway. I have too much of this planed to drop it. So enjoy!

E.P.S (Early Post Script) – I HAVE A BETA! Yeah! I would like to thank Frodobaggins87 for all the hard work and dedication put into this project. So this has been Beta'd and if you will look you will notice that I have gone back and fixed things.

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_That which he feared most_

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Logically Link knew he should be feeling heat at the moment, but found it hard to pretend. The other combatants were sweating right through their expensive silks, but Link was unbothered by it. Thus he sat with the others fanning himself in a way that would suggest he too was dying of the heat.

Why they all had to sit out in the heat while the first stages of the second event were set up he wasn't sure, but Link wasn't about to leave just because he was bored. Men were running doing Farore only knows what. The only thing he found interesting was the people running around in blue skin tight suits.

_'Sheikah' _Link confirmed to himself, for indeed that's who they were. Their milling about could be connected to the contest, but their exact purpose escaped Link's mind.

_'Why would the king need Sheikah? He has enough men at his command to set this affair up.'_ But Link did not have long to consider this as the king was already standing up to speak.

"My good people," he began, "our next event is soon to commence. Shall we begin?" Raucous cheers ripped the air as the towns' people screamed their approval.

"Very well then. The next event in the Suitors competition…Fear." He raised his hand and a Sheikah stepped forward.

"The combatants will go in the reverse order of their place in the foot race. Any weapon they currently hold on their body is fair game, and there is no time limit. The contestants will run through a gauntlet pertaining to their greatest fear, and at the end will meet it!" The king paused to rearrange his draping cape

"First of all the combatants…Atticus Fairfax of Maedelia!" Nervously Atticus stepped to the Sheikah; his leg seemed to have been magically healed. His hands were shaking slightly, but only Link could tell.

A Sheikah dressed in the fashion of a priest came up to him. Behind him followed a younger teenaged male, but beyond that Link could discern nothing about him. His body was covered with the traditional warrior outfit (which showed off his highly defined muscles) and that which was not covered by material was wrapped in bandages. Links' memories of Sheik threw themselves to the fore front of his mind. He had to shake his head to clear the visions he knew were gathering behind his eyes.

The Sheikah placed his hands over Atticus' temples and closed his eyes. Moments later turned to his young assistant, a laughing smirk twitching at his mouth. The pair of them walked to a table next to a podium. The priest spread his arms wide, which allowed his extensive sleeves to fall back and expose his bandaged arms. The words he spoke were not Hylian, Link was sure. He was positive it was not the Goddesses' language either.

A series of chanted phases circled around the field in Link's minds eye and he watched as a large shimmering form began to shape in front of the podium. A wide unbecoming door hung on rickety hinges and inside Link could hear a distinct buzzing noise. A quick glance at Atticus told him that he had heard the buzzing to.

"He was right" Faolan Medwin muttered to the man next to Link.

Trembling Atticus stepped into the Labyrinth. The walls were dripping with a sticky substance, Link could see.

_'Honey! It's a giant beehive!' _

The Priest's young male assistant followed Atticus in at a distance.

For the next hour they stood. The Audience could see well what was happening, but from where their group of nervous contestants stood, their vision was limited.

A sequence of chilling screams rent the air and then a spine tingling heavy thud, and the crowd went wild. Link couldn't tell what had happened, the crowd's reaction told him nothing.

Moments later the Sheikah priest raised his arms once more, chanted and then lowered his arms again. With his arms fell the image of the Gauntlet that had just been run. On the ground lay a very swollen Atticus Fairfax. The young male Sheikah knelt next to him checking his vital signs. Healers rushed to the sight and busied themselves with his health.

"He's alive!" came the pronouncement. Link let out a breath he was holding, He rather liked Atticus and didn't want him dead at all. By getting to the final event he still had a chance to live.

"Mathalan Elwyn of Ilythia!" the process was repeated again. The Sheikah priest extracted the fear from Mathalan's body and constructed a Labyrinth. Link could literally feel the heat rising out of the maze.

Mathalan looked at the door, which was shaped like a bonfire, and gulped. He stepped up to open the door and severely burned his hand on the iron handle. It was then Link knew Mathalan would not survive this event. Without the coverage of a Goron tunic, Mathalan would be baked alive in a matter of minutes.

Just like before the young male Assistant followed Mathalan through the door, and the pair vanished from Link's sight.

As they waited, the intense heat caused many of the contestants to shield their faces; even Link almost closed his eyes from the heat. He smiled to himself. Despite his watering eyes this was nothing compared to the fire temple. For a moment he pondered the condition the young Sheikah warrior must have been in.

_'In order to survive this, his training must have been intense.' _

He didn't know why, but the young man reminded him remarkably of Sheik, who later had been revealed as Princess Zelda in Disguise.

Ten minutes later the teenaged Sheikah ran out of the labyrinth. In response the priest raised his arms, revoked the images' power and striped the illusion from the field.

On the iron floor sprawled Mathalan. The healers dashed to his side, but they all knew it was too late.

"Mathalan Elwin of Ilythia is dead!" the king called for a few moments of silence. Link fixed his eyes on the young man who had only lived twenty years. A bitter wave of guilt washed over him.

_'Who am I to live forever, when these children must die for honor?'_ He managed to crush the impending waves of self hate and returned his attention to the king.

"Eldon Merscot of Aratham!" once again the Sheikah priest extracted the mans' worse fear and formed a maze, which was strung with giant spider webs. Eldon held his head high, for he had been expecting that. He marched into the web and said nothing, behind him as always followed the young Sheikah aid.

This time Link lost track of time, the hours crawled like slugs, and the sun's heat was only getting worse. Some of the men had taken to sitting down. Link, not wanting to appear different, sat as well. His eyes focused on the webbing strung over Eldon's labyrinth. His mind reeled and he found himself in the forest temple. The Poe lights in the center of the main foyer were lit; his feet carried him to the elevator that would take him down to the bottom of the temple.

A quick shake of the head pulled the thoughts out of his mind. He glanced around and to his relief nothing was different, the stream of time had only pulled him through.

It was not long after that before the priest lifted his arms and removed the spider nest of horror from the field. Eldon stood with his sword out, panting. An unusual brown colored blood coated the metal. Link knew what it was without a thought.

_'Skulltulla blood. How many times have I had to scrape that from my sword?'_

When it became clear that Eldon was in shock he was carried away to the Healers tent. Shock, however could be treated, and Eldon would be fine. Poor Mathalan would never see another day.

"Arlais Xythia of Amerys!" and it began again. At first it was hard to tell what Arlais' fear was, because the entire front of the labyrinth was black. In fact nobody seemed to be able to decipher it. Only Arlais knew what he was facing.

Bravely he marched into the pitch black, the young Sheikah again followed. Arlais was quick to finish his event and immediately ran to the healers tent to vomit before the healers themselves could decide what was wrong with him. Link didn't know what Arlais had encountered and truth be told he didn't want to.

"Maeron Alastair of Accalia!"

Maeron's labyrinth differed from the others in one respect, it was entirely clear.

"It's made of water!" gasped Elroy as he suppressed a shutter.

At the end of the maze like could see a serene blue figure sitting on a sand bar, sunning itself.

_'A Zora! Is his fear water, or fish?'_ the others seemed to be thinking the same thing, as a few of them burst into violent bouts uncontrollable laughter.

Maeron swallowed his fear and marched into the water, like every other time the Sheikah followed. Maeron's progress through the maze was clear to them, though they couldn't always tell what he was doing exactly. Sometimes he would stop and think or push something.

_'It must be like the Temples, There are puzzles to solve in order to get further'_ with this thought pressing on his mind, Link dreaded to know what his fear would be, for he truly was not sure what it would be. He had faced too much to be sure what was fear and what was anxiety.

Maeron had little trouble getting to the end, in fact it took him less time then the previous competitors had taken; However, as soon as he reached the Zora he panicked. His knees seemed to give out and he knelt in the water. He and the Zora regarded each other for a time and then Maeron having steeled his courage made a flying leap at the creature.

In defense it ducked and high kicked Maeron in his unprotected stomach. He gasped and fell, but recovered in time to swing his leg around and trip the fish person. It fell with a gurgling cry.

Maeron swung his sword in an impressive arc and halved the Zora's body. It gave a final croak of a disappointed cry before falling completely limp. The illusion disappeared.

Maeron knelt on the ground sobbing and thrashing his sword where the Zora had been. The healers had difficulty getting to him but one fast thinking junior assistant threw a stunning spell at the distraught noble.

The king observed the aftermath with a kind of satisfied contempt like someone who has watched someone they dislike be humiliated, but he soon donned the courteous host persona once more. Link had to wonder what the King had against Maeron.

"Elroy Maeve of Aurelia!"

Bravely Elroy strode forward, he even met the Sheikah priest half way. His confidence brimmed from his askew hat to his ridiculous curved boots.

"Aurelians, they always dress like that." Talandiel remarked. Link had to agree. He had seen his share of Aurelians and Elroy was dressing mildly compared to the others he had seen.

By now the image had been projected, and Link cocked his head in surprise. The labyrinth was shaped like a giant fish, including its mouth opening. Inside Link knew what would be waiting.

_'Why would he fear a Barinade worse of all?'_ he pondered, but didn't come up with a reason. He didn't know that Aurelian children hear stories of Barinades like the children of Hyrule hear ghost stories.

Link couldn't see the maze, but he knew Elroy was faring badly. Each time an electric current made his hair stand up on end he flinched, knowing exactly what Elroy was feeling.

When the Sheikah assistant dashed out of the maze, Link knew Elroy had met with a deadly shock. It was a terrible way to go and Link wouldn't have wished it on anyone. The healers carted away Elroy's charred remains as soon as the priest let the illusion fall.

"Elroy Maeve of Aurelia is dead!"

"What happened in there? What did he meet?" Arien asked quietly, but no one answered. A silence was observed for their fallen comrade.

"Faolan Medwin of Auryon!" Faolan raised his eyes to the king and walked forward to the Sheikah Priest. Links eyes rested on the young Assistant.

_'Who is he? He must be younger than twenty.' _

The illusion the Sheikah priest created for Faolan was the most disturbing version Link had seen yet. Large grasping hands made up the door itself and large dismembered fingers made up the door frame.

"WallMasters" Emrys Lyneth Decided. "He told me before the competition. His entire family was killed by them during the night while they were traveling to Aradia. Faolan was the only one to live. To this day, he cannot face a WallMaster."

Link looked to the doors, and truly the door was made of the bones of a WallMaster. He shook his head, dispelling the visions clouding their way into his mind.

Hours passed. Link hardly noted the passage of time, but to the other men the hour wait was fatiguing. Emrys and Arien played a game of some sort; which Link hadn't been able to figure out the rules. Elyri had propped himself against a wooden post and was currently resting his eyes. Only Cordorallan remained standing, his eyes focused on Link.

_'Is he trying to figure me out? I can't tell. Perhaps he knows of what could have been? No, only I remember. The others had their memories sealed.'_

Just as dusk was settling upon the field the Sheikah exited the maze; his head hung in grief. Link watched, eyes never leaving the young Sheikah's face.

_'He is familiar, and yet I can't place him. Why do I feel as though I know him?' _

More silence marked the passing of Faolan Medwin of Auryon. The others bowed their heads, knowing he had met the same fate as his family. But the king only waited a moment. The contest pressed on. It became apparent to Link that the competition would continue into the night. Great torches were lit to illuminate the arena and he had little trouble seeing.

"Arien Parpalorian of Fasiris!" Arien looked up from his game, not expecting his name to be read. He stood and approached the priest who took the fears from his mind, giving him a look that clearly said 'you are in the wrong competition.' Arien smiled meekly and gave a light chuckle.

The illusion the priest conjured resembled the Gerudo Fortress, but Link knew Arien had never been there.

_'Then he was right, his fear will be a warrior woman.' _

At the front Arien looked over the structure, puzzled, not knowing what to do. Link looked at the blocky building and realized that the structure was an exact replica of the Gerudo Fortress, not just something like it. Arien selected a likely door way and entered. Link noticed that he chose the northern most passage way.

The next hour they watched as Arien exited and entered numerous passage ways, each time looking the worse for the wear. Only Link knew what he was facing in each unconnected passage way. Vaguely he wondered how he was going to get to places were one would need a hook shot, but still Arien continued, so Link thought little of it.

It was just over the two hour mark when the Sheikah Priest removed the Labyrinth from the field, Arien stood triumphant, having defeated the woman he so feared. Jauntily, he nearly skipped over to the group, his eyes were bright.

"That wasn't so bad." The healers tackled him anyway and hauled him to the healing tent.

"Talandiel Garlatia of Mesiadonoly!" and the process continued. Talandiel managed to defeat the sea monster that was waiting for him. Even after the event he would not say why sea monsters were his greatest fear when he had never been to the ocean.

"Elyri Farathia of Agamemnon!"

Elyri's maze was built out of rock. And he plowed forward into it like a man possessed. It was then that Link took a look at the people in the bleachers. Among the face he found those of the previous contestants.

'_So when we are done, we get to go above and watch the others compete.'_ For a moment he was afraid of that his fears would show them. But the Triforce of courage managed to sooth his troubled thought.

Elyri passed his test with a brave face and a strong stomach, but had been bludgeoned by Gorons; which happened to be his greatest fear. Link hid a smile, Gorons put up a tough front, but if you don't bother them, they won't bother you. For them to have attacked him, he would have had to be waving his sword at everything he came across.

"Emrys Lyneth of Elysia!"

Emrys conducted the whole thing with wide eyes and unsteady nerves. He marched into the Labyrinth with his sword already poised for action, but did not make it far. When He was ten paces in the group watched him be ripped into several pieces. Link closed his eyes to the carnage and glanced at Cordorallan, who was emptying his stomach into a nearby trash receptacle. The Sheikah assistant hadn't even entered the maze. Healers placed Emrys' remains onto a stretcher and managed to keep their stomachs steady.

Link followed their progress. He had thought Emyrs stronger then he had proved to be and wondered what it had been in the maze. No clues came from anyone and the king called for another round of silence.

Only he and Cordorallan remained. They quickly looked at each other and just as quickly looked away. Link allowed his eyes to stray to the young Sheikah assistant again. He was sitting at the Priests feet while the healers cleaned up the mess. He seemed to be awaiting some sort of orders and did not move a bit. His red eyes were closed and he rested his bandaged head on his knees. He looked exhausted.

"Cordorallan Lendethial of Thalassa!"

Cordorallan gave Link a look of something indiscernible and turned to meet the priest, who was being trailed by his young Sheikah assistant.

The priest placed his hands to Cordorallan's temples and pulled away sharply. He looked at Link, then back to Cordorallan, his eyes wide with confusion. Then just as suddenly he turned and walked back to the podium.

The Labyrinth he conjured for Cordorallan was different then all the others by one specific discerning factor. First of all it was underground, and Link could clearly see every room. And second of all, the building was an exact replica of the Temple in the Sacred Realm. 1

Link allowed a gasp to pass his lips and he stood to get a better look. At the end stood a lithe figure clad in green and holding a sword he recognized. It was him at the end of Cordorallan's maze, he was his greatest fear. Or rather, the Hero of Time was. The contestants in the bleachers looked blankly at the end of the Labyrinth, even with their combined knowledge they couldn't figure out what Cordorallan was about to face.

But to Link there was no question, the man at the end of the maze was the exact same person as the one standing outside it, even the mask was there.

Cordorallan took in a shuddering breath and lowered himself into the maze.

Link could not take his eyes from himself at the end of the maze.

_'Why am I his greatest fear? Surly the incident with the Master Sword is not enough to make me his worst fear!'_

Try as he might, Link could not figure it out. His eyes followed the bent figure of Cordorallan through the maze as he sought to understand.

_'He fights with illusions and is afraid of the Hero of Time. Could he…?' _even in his mind he let the question hang, he would not let himself think of what could happen if his suspicions were true.

_'The only one, who could know about me, would be Ganon.' _He steeled his nerves. '_And that would mean that Cordorallan is working for Ganon. But what are they trying to accomplish? What could they gain by winning the suitors compe…' _he did not even need to finish the sentence. By winning the competition the victor gets the princess's hand in marriage, which would give Ganon the power to do what ever he wanted.

_'He could leave the Sacred Realm! Cordorallan would force Zelda to open it, but she doesn't know how. They would need me. I cannot let them get to her. Not while I still live!'_ he narrowed his eyes at Cordorallan who had made it to the Hero of Time standing at the end. Their fight was bloody, and Link was pleased to see himself give a good fight. His twin even managed to draw the first blood.

The two fighters danced around each other in a terrifying display of death. Each sword swipe whistled through the air, a testament to their speed. Cordorallan was skilled, Link had to admit, and he could see his copy struggling to keep the advantage.

A quick round house kick to the face threw Cordorallan across the room, and The Hero of Times' sword danced right over to him. The Hero of Time managed to get a few good swipes in before Cordorallan was on his feet once more. He managed to keep the upper hand, using the Master Sword more like a club than a sword.

But Cordorallan's illusions proved to be too much. Link could not see what the Earl had used, but what ever it was, it frightened the copy into making mistakes that cost him his life. He died proudly from what ever it was Cordorallan had shown him.

Link sighed and knew that Cordorallan Lendethial was the man he would be fighting in the final round.

"Llewellyn Tiluvian of Artemisia!"

Link raised his head.

_'This is it then, my turn.' _Balling his hands into fists he managed to suppress any shaking that would have otherwise broken out. And yet he was not afraid. The Triforce of Courage would not allow him to be afraid.

The Sheikah priest stepped forward. His young male assistant leapt from the round and followed him.

"Hold still, this will not hurt." He priest whispered as he placed his hands over Links temples. A deep burning sensation filled his mind. The priest widened his eyes and poured more energy into the spell. The heat became unbearable and Link found himself gasping from the pain.

"It is done, come Sheik" the priest pulled his hands away and returned to his table, the young assistant followed.

_'His name is Sheik? But…'_ he didn't have time to think about it as his own labyrinth was beginning to form.

Tall walls of dirt erected themselves and no door was present. But from the gasp of the crowd he knew his suspicion was correct. Waves of the smell of rotting flesh reached his nose and his pulse quickened.

_'I cannot do this again! I can't!' _breathing became difficult and he felt himself fall to his knees. Not afraid, but completely overwhelmed. Minutes waltzed their way by and still he sat.

"Sir, Your challenge is complete." Link nodded and stood, swallowing his apprehensions and walked to the dirt wall. Sheik, the young assistant approached him carefully.

Link gave him a look that clearly said,' I will have to take you in with me.' Sheik placed a hand to the dirt walls. His confusion was unresolved by the touch.

"What is it?" a fear had crept into his voice. Link closed his eyes. Though he wanted to ease the lads' fears, he could not answer. Instead he pulled out his little brown Ocarina, brushing his fingers almost lovingly across its ceramic glazed surface. Then taking Sheik's hand he placed it on his shoulder. He looked into the young man eyes and gave a reassuring smile.

His graceful fingers paraded a dreary and haunting melody as though he would never play again, and in a spiral of purple stars they were swept away.

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Ok, just a few clarifications, in case you where confused.

1- The Sacred Realm temple that Cordorallan runs is just what think is in the Sacred Realm. It doesn't say there is one, but I have decided there is; so there.

2- This is through out the whole thing, the titles tacked on to the end of the contestants names (i.e. of Artemisia) are the kingdom the contestant comes from. I don't think I said anything about it and it confused Garnet Runestar's Boyfriend when I made him read it. So if you weren't confused then good for you, but if you were then I hope this helped.

3- Alright, Yes Link is Mute in my story. He doesn't talk. Whether or not that changes is up to the plot. hehehe.

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Thank you to my reviwers. I got up this morning and weht to check my reviews...Lowc and behold I had FIVE MORE! Thanks!

**BladeMaster16**- I will fix handle to hilt. Sorry about that. My knowledge of swords is limited to what Garnet Runestar tells me (and she only nows theatre not real stuff.) Thank you for the note.

**Dan**- Good to see you reviewed another chapter, Thank you for the continueing suport.

**Exardas-** I am glad you liked it, and yesI will continue.

**Ranma Hibiki**- You are right, Link hasn't spoken. That is because he is muite. I think I have mentioned this before. If not then now you know. (acording the universeI have constructed during the quest Navi did all the talking for Link.)

**Kariah**- Unfair advantage? well, Maybe a little. About the monsters I think they are just in the world. I am saying Ganondorf didn't create them in this one. (even if i did really) So I guess I took a few liberties there. hehehe.

This is the end of the Second block of what was once Chapter Five. Well, what did you think? I hope you enjoyed it. Tell me what you liked, tell me what you hated, but please tell me something!

_REVIEW!_


	7. The City of the Dead

Ok, here is the third part and finally we get to Link's part of the Second event! Have I just tortured you by making you wait? Well, it is better this way, believe me! If I had handed you the whole thing in one block your brain would have exploded, as my poor Beta will prove! I really am sorry about that! Anyway Enjoy!

**P.S.-I realize this took a long time to get out, but I have just had Open Knee surgery and am not aloud to walk for the next five weeks. You should also know that I am confined to a recliner and my loving father has rerouted the whole computer system so that I can use the Compy as I lay here. And, if anything looks funny here, I think it would be fair to tell you I am taking Oxycotten every two hours. Hehehe. I feel a little woozy….**

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_The City of the Dead_

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The sparkles left them standing on a stone alter. Link replaced his Ocarina and looked down over the old wooden fence, into what would have been the Kakariko graveyard, to the Sheikah priest below. He gave the young Sheik's arm an encouraging pat, for even though he knew the Sheikah were brave men, the temple yawning before them reeked of endless nightmare and overwhelming death; it easily qualified as the most horrifying place Link had ever been. Bracing his own nerves he marched down the stone steps to the horror beyond.

His feet ran swift and his memory pulled from its deep recesses the way through the temple. For the sake of time and his own mentality he skipped over the other parts of the Labyrinth and made straight for the door he knew would lead closer to the rotting monster in the bowels.

Inside he knew he could avoid the trial for the hover boots and that he could proceed on to the deeper depths of the illusionary temple. Past the dirt walls carved by undead hands he turned left gathered silver rupees and garnered the key. Reentering the room of three paths he took in a deep breath of the putrid air, turned to see sheik waiting for him and pressed on to the chamber of falling razors.

As he approached each yawning gape of a hole he took hold of sheik and floated the across. Always making sure the young man was safely following him. Not letting him lag and get lost. Not matter how strong Sheik was, he was not going to leave him in rotten city

The room he entered was full of spikes and with the Lens of Truth he was able to see the redeads hidden in the corners. Using the Longshot he pulled himself onto the ledge, used his key and waited for Sheik to climb his way up.

_'I will leave no one alone in this pit of death and decay. Nobody should have to travel this place alone.'_

While he waited he turned his head to the ceiling. He knew the audience was watching him and that they couldn't understand why he was just sitting there waiting for the Sheikah climbing up the outcrop. Reaching down he pulled the young man up, then turned to the cold iron door to proceed.

"Why do you help me? The others left me behind no matter what the trial." Link stilled himself against the door post. His eyes set on the young man.

"They thought I was merely the person to report their progress. They did not see the real trial." Sheik stepped past the door to look Link in the eye. Link looked back in questioning.

"Only a man truly worthy of being a king would make sure that the other person with him would make it out as well. You have waited for me and have done what you can to help me through the Labyrinth, even though you knew I could make it. You didn't just leave me to follow."

"How is it that only you looked after my well being? Why is it that only you understood my passage was not simple?" his fierce eyes demanded the answer Link could not give.

"You cannot fool me! You have been here before, for some reason you have been here before. Do you wait for me because you think I am weak, or because you will not leave me here alone?"

Not knowing how to give the young man an answer, yet wish desperately that he could, Link proceeded through the iron clad doorway.

_'Is he angry because I have tried to help? Well, I'm sorry, but I don't want anyone to have to do this alone!'_

At the end of the passage he could hear large fans, as he had expected. He removed his Hover Boot attachments and replaced them with the Iron Boots. It took little time after that to pull himself through the fans and into a room remembered well. At the end he waited for the Sheikah, but did not help him.

He climbed onto the floating ghost ship, waited on the deck. Only when he was sure Sheik was holding on did he venture to the Triforce mark in the center. His eyes rose to the upper north corner of the ceiling where he knew Princess Zelda and the King were sitting.

Reverently he removed his Ocarina and played notes he had come to love, and the ship shook in reaction to the Royal families lullaby. Sheik was startled from his feet at the sudden movement, but soon found a place he could sit.

Their travel was speedy and Link instantly noticed the lack of Stalfos, but was grateful for their absence. His mind calmed even though the air was still putrid and the earthen walls still crawled with the flesh of the dead that had carved them.

As the ghost ship bobbed and floated down the corpse river, Sheik perched on a beam not to close, but not too far from Link; his unshakable nerves had been torn to their greatest limit from the dungeons travails. Link sat placatedly on the Triforce mark, where he felt safe from the dungeons despairing power.

"I am sorry about the way I spoke to you. I was raised to play this part in the competition, yet no one knew. My anger at the others for ignoring me should not have been taken out on you, I apologize." Link nodded. Sheik seemed to accept that as an answer.

"You seem to know this way well, the others wandered around a lot. Your trail has led in a specific direction. I say again, you cannot fool me Sir Llewellyn, You know this place, and you have been here before." Link turned to his companion and made an expression neither positive nor negative. Sheik had seemed to have lost his previous anger.

"But how can you have been here? The Sheikah lived here once. Did you know that? They did, long ago, but they were forced to leave. The dead, they forced them out of their homes. I know you know what I mean, you have been here. The dead live once more down here. Their magic practices did not sit well in the final rest of the dead. Generations after they had settled in here the crypts in which they buried their loved ones became a dangerous place. The dead would not remain buried. Soon it was not safe to leave our homes. They sealed off the entrance to the city; the screams of those trapped still haunt the survivors. The few that lived settled in what you would now call Kakariko."

Link closed his eyes. Yes he had known. The poor people trapped in the city of their death had written about their end. And while Link had never been taught to read, Navi could. She had read every last entry to him.

"You wonder why I have told you this, don't you. I think I would wonder too. Just being in here makes me wonder why. Speaking of such things is looked down upon in our culture. We do not speak of the dead city. But to you, I can speak all I want and you will not betray me."

Link stood to glance over the ships' edge, through the green fog, the deck began to appear. He looked at Sheik who had stood as well. The ghost ship ground to a stop with a tremendous lurch and began to sink into the murky waters, jostling the two warriors from their feet.

Link was the first to recover.Steadying his feet he lunged through the air and landed smoothly in a tucked roll.

Sheik seemed torn between two fears. He looked down at the water dipping and cresting below him in abject terror.He gripped the rail and pushed vaulted himself over it, landing gracefully in a crouch. Regaining his feet in relief, he turned to look at the ship just as it plummeted into the murky abyss. A giant wave of water washed out of the river and both Link and Sheik were washed off their feet in the flood.

Link made no effort to move, his clothes were soaked and his drenched doublet was making it hard to move, he felt pinned to the dirty ground.

Sheik sat himself up and took in a heavy breath,

"Well, that could have been worse." Link nodded; indeed it could have been worse.

He hefted himself to his feet and stretched out his back.

"I think we shall be alright. Are we near the end? I think we must be, you seem to know the way well enough. But still, I must wonder why."

Deciding that everything still worked properly and realizing that a soggy doublet did add a lot more weight he pulled the thing from his shoulders. It fell in a sodden heap. Link sighed (he had rather liked the over coat although it was a bit more excessive a piece then he personally would have purchased) and left the green article behind.

The two of them walked down the causeway into the maze room. Link quickly destroyed the FloorMasters while Sheik kept a distance, still producing a volley of commentary. "This chamber was once used in the Ritual of Oshira. Only those who could find their way through were worthy of the Ritual."

_'What ritual?'_ Link wondered, but as usual, contented himself with the unanswered question.

Sheik's constant chatter had annoyed Link when it had first began, but as the pair of them had continued Link found himself grateful for the conversation, even if it was completely one sided. He was sure Sheik was talking to fill the void of silence.

_'Not that I can blame him. The only thing that kept me from running out of this place was Navi, and sometimes I wanted to rip her wings off and feed her to the fire.' _

"What is so funny? The Ritual of Oshira kept this city safe from those who would have taken it by force."

Link gave him an incredulous look (He had never believed in any of the superstitious nonsense the Sheikah books talk about) and marched on to the room where the Boss Key waited, the room of wooden spikes.

Clink. The door behind them slid closed; dubiously Sheik looked to the wooden spikes. A series of hollow snaps echoed in the room and the walls sprang to life. They jerked harshly forward in small but frightening increments. Sheik backed into the door of ancient steel.

"You have led us into the wrong room"

Link, with a clear mind took hold of Sheik's arm; knowing that without physically touching him, the Sheikah would be fried. From his pouch he pulled a red gem; a quick and spell-less version of Din's fire. Collecting enough force in his arm muscles he hurled the jewel to the stone ground. It shattered with an intense light, so bright it left Sheik (who had not been ready for the blast) blinded for moments afterward. A red dome of fire exploded outwards, engulfing the spikes and reducing their threat to cinders.

Using the sun's song he stunned the redeads guarding a large treasure chest. It took all his strength to haul the ornate lid off and retrieve the only key in the dungeon that really mattered.

_'The boss key. With this I will end the second event.'_

Returning to Sheik, he checked the young mans eyes. Link was no medical expert but he was reassured Sheik would not bear any lasting damage after looking directly into the heart of Din's fire.

They paused in the maze room for Link to catch his bearings.

_'I still need one key to get to the boss door.'_

It didn't take Link long to remember where the next one lay. He took a deliberate course to a room directly opposite the room they just exited.

When they reached the room, Sheiks eyes had refocused completely. They slid the door open and slithered in. The room was gloomy, dank, and smelled of torture. Link shuddered; he had always disliked this room. Sheik however seemed to have opposite ideas. His knees caved in and he bowed respectfully before the bloody 'X' in the middle of the floor. Chains rattled eerily from its points and an ancient pool of dried blood stained the floor, a reminder of all those who had died because of its use.

"The Alter of Oshira, My eyes are not worthy to look upon it." Sheik ran his eyes along the Chains, eyes filling with tears of admiration. Links' eyes scanned the thing uncertainly.

_'Bowing to a device used for torture? The more I find out about Sheikah, the less I want to know!'_

Link moved across the room and pulled out the Lens of Truth. In the corner sulking, waiting for the attack it knew was coming, was a FloorMaster. Link moved forward cautiously, his sword poised for assault. If the FloorMaster had any real eyes they would have all been fixed on Link.

The beast tensed and sprung, its withered fingers gripping at the air and narrowly missing Links' face. The Master Sword swung in a wild arch and the FloorMaster found itself sliced in half.

Link dashed to Sheik and held on to his arm; from his pouch he drew his last spell-less version of Din's fire. The crystal exploded in another blinding flash. Sheik pulled his eyes away from the 'X' to see what Link had destroyed, but saw nothing and returned his gaze to the 'X' in the middle.

"There is nothing here for you to fight, Llewellyn. What are you doing?"

Link didn't do anything to show he had heard Sheiks' question, but retrieved the key he needed for the next door. He paused before the unbarred steel door and poked Sheik in the side.

The Sheikah pulled his eyes from what he called the Alter of Oshira and leapt to his feet, following Link out the door. He made no explanation for his admiration of the 'X' and Link was left to wonder why a torture device had stirred the Sheikah so deeply.

They pressed on from the room. Sheik no longer chattered, but remained in a resigned sadness. Not knowing what else to do Link left him to his thoughts.

He created a bridge using an unstable stone statue and after crossing over, turned his new found key into the lock. They easily hover booted their way across the gaping stone monoliths. On the other side Link used his Boss key. He wanted to tell Sheik to stay, but could not find a way to sign his concerns to him.

_'I wish Navi was here…Did I just say that? I must be sick' _

They both crossed into the room where a large hole had taken up residence in the middle of the floor. Sheik dared to peak over the edge and looked to Link uncertainly.

"You are afraid of… holes?" Sheik could tell by Link's rolling eyes that he was wrong and pressed the matter no further.

Link walked to the metal clad fissure and pulled his bow from his pouch.

"Where did that come from?" The Sheikah exclaimed, surprised.

_'Link Space'_ He snickered slightly and hurled himself down the pit. Above him Sheik's gasp of surprise made him aware that his Final challenge of the Task had shown itself.

It's great red pulsing eye unfurled like a sick and demonic flower, focusing its attention on Link. The whole room stunk of rotting flesh and, strangely enough, Hylian leather wax.

Link hit bottom, was tossed into the air and landed in a heap of skin on the edge of the bong.

_'He waxed the Drum?'_ His mind tried to figure out why anyone would wax a drum.

His wondering was answered when Sheik came tumbling down the hole and slid across the Drum to the edge. He landed oddly and was still.

_'He means to make the surface to slippery to stand on'_ Link realized in horror.

A terrible voice sang to a ghostly drum. He could see Sheik staying away near the lip of the bongo. He seemed to be holding his leg.

_'Is he hurt?'_

Bongo-Bongo whipped his body down to eye level with Link; it bobbed a little in gloating then raised its hand and shoved Link across the drum. Link slid frictionless, legs scrambling for purchase. Nothing could stop him and he found himself looking in the direction he was headed. The edge zipped forward. All he could do was grab onto the rough lip of the drumhead as Bongo-Bongo's hand pushed him off the edge. Hanging he was at a loss.

_'I can't stand on the Drum, He will push me off. I can't move on the Drum it has been waxed and I can't fight because the only place I can stay up is hanging over the edge of a suspended Drum!'_

His brain raked itself trying to find a way to beat the challenge. His fingers ached horribly and he could feel his grip slipping. He had little time. Wait, that was it! He swung his body until he managed to grab hold of the rim, and with both hands gripping the side he pulled himself up. Balanced on the edge, he pulled from his sack the Iron boots, a pair of heavy metal bracers. Secure in the knowledge that the boots would hold him upright he turned his attention to Bongo-Bongo.

The beast hovered above the drum, taunting. The monsters' head bobbed in front of Link, just out of bow reach. Link's eyes darted to Sheik; who was still sitting on the edge, pain laced in his eyes. He had been injured. Knowing the Sheikah would at least be safe from the battle Link pulled out the lens of truth. Bongo-Bongo responded to the use of shadow magic and descended.

Link, a plan forming in his head and knowing he had to be quick, set about dispatching with the monsters hands first Link's bow sang as one after another, two arrows sped into the monster's hands, immobilizing the detached limbs for a moment. The lens of truth showed him the great eye, now bloody red with anger. It rushed forward with demon speed. Link stood ready, his sword raised. Twenty feet, Ten feet, Five feet…Three...Two...One. Spelch!

The Master Sword slid into Bongo-Bongo's luminous eye as if it were slicing butter. Clear Vitreous Body dripped from the clean cut like a gluttonous blob. Link slipped the sword further through the eye fluid and into the beast's rotting brain.

The screams of Bongo-Bongo's death throws seemed like wicked orchestras playing upon saws, and as he wrenched the sword from the disappearing flesh Link covered his ears to keep it from destroying his hearing. Sheik, he could see, had managed to pull his leg into a better position. He stood, wincing slightly.

In a hazy of spell strings clearly visible to Links eyes the walls of the Labyrinth began to fray. Large sections of it disappeared entirely in runic designs until nothing remained and Link stood tall and proud facing the audience.

Sheik stood yards away from him, thought his eyes where clouded with pain, He stood still watching Link while the healers seized his arms and physically forced him into the healing tent. As he was being led away, Link glanced back to Sheik, limping his way back to the priest.

Link managed to point back to the arena and bring the healers attention to the injured Sheikah.

"Oh, him. Don't think about him. He's going back to his Master." Link looked again. Sheik was sitting obediently at the priest's feet, while his Master performed spells to seal off his illusions.

"Would you look at that, he's hurt!" One of the healers exclaimed.

"Maybe his master will let him see a healer."

"Not likely! You should have seen them earlier. That priest is wicked towards his Slave. Of course, I am in no place to criticize someone of higher rank than myself, but you mark my words. Anything that boy sustained in today's competition will be left untreated. The Sheikah priests are not kind men. I feel bad for the boy. Who knows what tortures he has had to endure."

Link looked back the whole way to the tent. Sheik seemed to know what was expected of him and remained at the man's feet.

_'So he's a slave for the Sheikah Priest. That makes sense, but how did that happen? I thought slavery had been abolished in Hyrule.' _He didn't know what to think. But now that he knew, things made a little more sense. He understood why Sheik had been so upset over the help he had given him.

_'If I had been a slave all my life and nobody had ever shown me kindness before I would be shocked by it too. He is nothing like the Sheik Zelda was during the quest…I wonder if their near identical looks are a coincidence'_

Link was not sure what to think, what he did know was he wanted to know more about the enslaved Sheikah boy.

_'I have to help him if I can. No one should have to be a slave to anyone.'_

The tent entrance cut his view of Sheik off. It was much larger inside then he had first thought. Two rows of seven beds each decorated the room, but four were curtained off; blocking the bodies of the fallen.

Atticus sat propped in a cot, his face severely swollen. He gave Link a drugged smile, and returned to gazing at the ceiling. The others were missing, in the stands most likely.

"People of Hyrule! This concludes the First session of the 740th Suitors Competition. Tomorrow evening the Final Event will begin at dusk!" the announcement filled the stadium with the kings booming voice.

A thrill of horror shot through link.

_'Tomorrow night? Can I pass my self off as Llewellyn until then? And what about the real Llewellyn?' _Heavily he realized he would have to use some sort of sedative to keep the noble asleep.

To keep his mind distracted he looked around the tent. The healers had paid no mind to the king's announcement. Instead they brought him a bottle of red liquid. He instantly recognized the healing potion, for he had drunk many of them during his quest. (Unlike the ones he had purchased on his quest, which often smell of things unmentionable and tasted ten times worse.)

_'I guess when you learn to be a healer; they also teach how to make these things taste good, that hag in Kakariko could use a few tips from these fellows!'_

His stay in the healing tent was not long, and slipping out discreetly he found himself walking in the dark to Llewellyn's tent; only to discover a crowd had gathered at the opening. Cheers erupted from the mass like the cork out of a shaken bottle. The excitement oozed from their faces and Link debated hiding in the Temple of Time for the night. He only let his weakness, his definite dislike of crowds (Which probably came from growing in a forest with a tree for a parental figure) bleed through for a second and then screwed up his courage. He only had a few yards between himself and the crowd but he could already feel their oppressive heat.

The crowd converged on him in a raving throng. Girls flashed pearly smiles and men patted his back, but Link plowed through them. His ears pounded. Arms reached out to grab his clothes.

_'This is ridiculous! They hated me earlier!' _

With a quick dip and a run he dodged out of the crowd and slipped into the tent. Inside the crowds ruckus was muted to a dull roar, a huge relief after the screaming outside. Mentally exhausted from the day's activities Link sat on the edge of the down feather bed. A groan from within reminded him that Llewellyn Tiluvian of Artemisia was still tied up.

Hastily, Link removed the covers and assessed the noble. Llewellyn's eyes were open and wide.

"Hmmm?" he protested, but the gag prevented Link from understanding.

"Hmm, Hwhhph Hmmmm!" Link spread the comforter over Llewellyn's head again.

He wasn't sure quite how to handle the situation now that he was in it. Saria had always said that would be his downfall. Rushing in without planning everything out never made anyone happy. It was worse the giving a cake to someone with a smile and not tell them you forgot the sugar.

_'What a mess I've created for myself to clean up. Not only do I need to keep Llewellyn hidden for the tournament tomorrow, but after I win (which I will) I will need to keep him in secret until I can get the Ocarina. Nothing matters after I escape with the Ocarina.'_

Firm in his decision but clueless how to initiate it he resolved to think on it when his head was clearer, better to take in one problem at a time. Feeling lighter about the subject Link turned.

His heart skipped a beat in surprise and he froze. Standing before him, in the corner was Impa and in her hand a sharp, dangerous looking short sword. Her eyes burrowed angrily through his mask as the sword's point hovered millimeters from his chest.

"Tell me what you are doing here, or I will cut your heart from your chest and throw it to the dogs."

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This was originally 36 pages long, but after I sent it to my Beta. (I have a beta! Isn't that exciting!) It was decided it was simply too much. So it has been cut into approximately three pieces. Never fear, it is the same length, just shipped and packaged in bite sized pieces. I don't want to overwhelm anyone. Anyway, tell me what you think. I live for this!

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**P.S. I rather like pain medication; however I do not like the recliner I am typing this from. Although I think you should know that I don't have a laptop. My dad has pulled the whole Computer over to me and placed the monitor on a swiveling arm that will pull it over to hover next to me. I can pull the keyboard onto my lap and type like that. A very sweet set up if I do say so myself. And to top it all off, Garnet Runestar, who you may not know about she does Harry Potter fan fiction, is angry at me because she can't type her story with me in my present condition. Hehehe. Anyway. The next chapter will be out as soon as possible. .**

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_P.P.S. - I think you should also know that Vitreous Body, which Mentioned during the battle with Bongo Bong, is the clear fluid that is the inside of you eye. Sorry, every once in a while my human anatomy classes jump into my stories. Hehehe_

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_REVIEW!_


	8. Deaths Grip Tightens

Yeah, I'm not dead. Sorry about that long stretch of nothing. I just didn't have time to update (to write I mean). But I'm here now and I am already typing the next installment!

Next chapter ! Woot. Um….Sorry about the cliffie there at the end, but it seemed like the perfect place to end it. And to all how mentioned the whole Link talking thing. I understand! There have been so many times I have written whole pages and then realized I had typed Link talking. So it's really hard for me as well. But keep reading! There may be some hope for the future! Hehehe. I do have the whole plot planned out!

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_Deaths Grip Tightens_

Link's eyes, wide with shock, slipped from Impa's face to the Sword pointed at his torso.

"You had better have some good answers boy, because I have seen some weird things in my life, but that event tops them all. Why do you have a fear of the Lost Sheikah City? Speak now boy, because this sword is sharp and I have no qualms with where I stick it."

Not knowing what else to do Link pulled his Gauntlet from his wrist and held his exposed hand out to the intimidating Sheikah. Her eyes flicked to the Triforce mark and back to Link's face.

Her sword grip relaxed, but remained in her hand.

Link on the bed turned to face the Sheikah; he waited for Impa's next move.

"The city was meant to be forgotten." She sat next to him. "I think that it awoke something in me. Suddenly, I know your face from somewhere"

Link nodded.

"Do you ever speak?" her questioning was unashamed. Link shook his head, and didn't meet her eyes.

"Mute?" Another nod.

"Well, I am sorry about that, but there is nothing for it."

She sat and noticing the unusual feeling of the bed pulled the duvet off the hidden noble. Her gaze flew to Links almost bashful face.

"I assume you are the real Llewellyn." She spoke to noble tied up under the bed covers. Indignantly, Llewellyn made some indistinguishable noises.

"I assumed as much." She replaced the covers; he made a several angry grunts from underneath. She assumed a seat next to Link; However, Link noticed her sword had not yet been sheathed.

"The question now sits, who are you?"

Not knowing how to answer Link stood and pulled his equipment off. Tenderly he placed the Master Sword on the beds edge. Impa turned, looking at what sort of sword deserved the love it was receiving.

Her eyes swept the blade up and down. Aghast she choked out a cry, bent forward, and gripped her head in her hands. Shocked at her display Link hurried to her side; desperate to aid in anyway he could.

For several moments the only noise was Llewellyn's muffled protests. Stillness settled on the room, but for her calm guise Link could still sense a deep battle of pain happening in Impa's head.

Suddenly the Sheikah sat up bolt right and gasped in a breath like someone who had almost drowned. Her hands shook and reached for Link's shoulder as a steadying support.

"I remember." Her face was sheet white. Link shifted to kneel in front of her; his piecing blue eyes concerned, but wanting to know more.

"That Sword, the Master Sword. I remember a chamber of crystal water, the River of Time, A boy standing on a platform of blue, the Hero of Time, looking at me with tired eyes. I remember what she tried to make us forget." Her eyes softened and stared him down her normal mask of tranquility replaced.

"Link…You look precisely the same. If anything has changed you look older. Did having another attempt at childhood change nothing for you?" He did not like the way her questions were heading and he turned from her, resuming his care of his weapons.

"What happened, Link? Why did nothing change for you? You were sent back like the rest of us, weren't you?"

His eyes rose to the Master Sword, a steely accusation in his eyes.

"The Master Sword?" Confused and sensing his discomfort she let the matter drop.

"What _are_ you doing here? Since that is the answer I came for." Link acted as though he hadn't heard.

"Will you not give me a hint?" Still no reaction.

Again, she let the matter drop.

"You can still weld the Master Sword, so I can assume what ever you are doing is not of evil." She stood and replaced her sword to its place across her waist. Glancing down to the bed she schooled her face into one of no emotion, but from her belt she pulled a small vial.

"Pour some of this on a cloth and place it over his mouth. It should keep him asleep long enough for you to win the competition." His surprised eyes met hers.

"Did you think you would lose? Those contemptible Nobles are combating the Hero of Time! They have not a prayer!" and yet she knew he had not been questioning her word usage, but rather her willingness to hand out a sleeping drug to a man who had cheated to get into a royal competition.

"Tomorrow, meet me at the Temple of Time at midday, wear the mask. Do not be late." And she was gone. Link was left holding the little bottle of Liquid sleep.

_'I had hoped I would not make anyone remember the Quest. I had wanted to slip in and out without disturbing things better left forgotten. But now that Impa remembers, what can I do? Nothing I suppose.'_

He set about looking for where he had placed the Master Swords wrappings; it did not take him long (having done it a thousand times before). Once finished he soaked a cloth he had found amongst Llewellyn's things in the clear fluid Impa had provided him. Even at an arms length he could smell the strong stench.

Moving to the bed he removed the covers. Llewellyn was no longer making noise; in fact he was looking at Link with a wild fear. Cautiously Link pulled the gag from Llewellyn's face.

"Hero of Time? What are you…" but Llewellyn never got to finish his sentence. Link shoved the cloth over the noble's mouth and silenced him. A few moments passed, Llewellyn struggled wildly in his rope bindings, but Links original knots stayed to well and he stilled, eyes closing.

_'That should do. Impa said it would last, I will trust her.' _With his thoughts eased Link moved to the other side of the bed. He drew the covers down and sat, removing his boots.

_'I hope this will be worth it.'_ He frowned at himself. _'Stay positive. I have to believe the Ocarina will fix this. I have to know it will. There is no if. Failure is not an option.'_ Nodding to himself he pulled his legs onto the mammoth sized bed and drew the covers to his chin.

_'It has been to long since last I slept in a bed.'_ Smiling to himself he closed his eyes and drifted off. Tonight, at least, he would sleep like a king.

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The next morning Link arose several hours after dawn (mostly because the bed was so comfortable). Rising from the monstrous cradle of coverlets and cushions he stretched his back and arms; then ventured to the other side. He drew the covers away and revealed Llewellyn. The spoiled Noble was still sound asleep, as a testament to his level of awareness a small pool of drool had collected next to his mouth. Link grinned at the sight, but quickly replaced the Duvet.

Knowing that it would look funny for him to appear in public in his clothes from yesterday Link set about the task of finding something else to wear. The task however, was not as simple as he had previously thought. Llewellyn, although he was small, was not Link sized.

After searching through most of the nobles clothes he happened upon a pair of embroidered black leggings that fit well. He had managed to match the leggings to a lovely green crepe back satin poets shirt. Deciding that he did indeed look like a noble enough to walk the streets Link pulled his hat from the day before over his sleep ruffled hair. He was just about to open the tent flap when he realized Llewellyn's mask was sitting on the bed and not on his face. Hastily he replaced it on his face and ventured out.

Although the day before had been clear and bright (even a little hot at times) the sky above him currently was dulled by dark cloud threatening to spill water. Shop keepers prepared for the coming storm by pulling large tarps over their goods. Link found the Market place duller than before because of the lack.

The people, discouraged by the impending clouds, gathered in clumps under roof out-croppings. He passed several such groups before he realized they were all talking excitedly.

"Should have expected it! I mean really…"

"Always some sort of intrigue in these competitions, isn't there?"

"It his bed though!"

"…That's right, in the back between the shoulders…"

"Never would have thought."

"Talandiel Garlatia!"

_'Talandiel? What happened?' _But even though he was curious he daren't be late for his meeting with Impa. The Sheikah had made it quite clear that tardiness was unacceptable. But even though he intended to ignore the whispers, he still couldn't get himself to concentrate.

He focused on the mutterings, trying to salvage some sort of information from them. Nothing. The people used hushed tones and the thunder was not helping.

_'This is pointless. I'm not going to get anything for snooping onto conversations I can't even hear. Besides Impa is waiting for me, even I don't dare make her wait long.'_

His continued walk didn't take long and by the time he reached the Temple of Time the drizzle had escalated to a down pour. With his stolen clothing dripping a surprising amount of water onto the stone floor Link stood patiently inside, waiting for the Sheikah to show herself.

He waited until he heard the rain begin to let up, and wondering where Impa could possibly be he seated himself on the floor, resting against the wall.

_'As much as I hate the memories this place brings, I seem to be here a lot.'_

It was during that time of self reflection that Link heard the distinct sound of a door being opened, sharply closed and then bolted. Link stood calmly, his head turned to the door. Impa strode confidently toward him, in her hands a sack of burlap held something that appeared to be a…

"Here boy, I have brought you a shield. You seem to be lacking one."

Link closed the distance between them in a single dash. An unexplainable excitement filled his body and he found himself bouncing slightly on his heels in his glee.

Impa, a small smile gracing her lips at his antics, set her burden on the floor and removed her gift from the sack. Links eyes turned to saucers and his mouth opened into gasp. Trembling, he reached forward to take the thing from the Sheikah's offering hands.

The Shield was a beauty to behold; its smooth design was similar to his old Hylian shield, yet sleeker and pleasing to the eye in a way that was distinctly sheikah. His eyes slid over its silky surface to the underside with pleasure, relishing the beautiful equipment he slipped it delicately onto his arm. Hefting it with a jovial bounce and turning towards Impa he displayed his smiling face.

"Every Warrior needs a good shield. That is Sheikah make, it will not break easily. We may not use them often, but we do know how to make a good shield. This one was my mothers." She gave his shoulder a firm pat that was strangely cold yet encouraging at the same time.

"You will do well. I trust you will return that shield when you win, Hero of Time." Link's nod of affirmation seemed an end to the conversation and Impa turned to leave. At the door she paused and turned to him.

"Talandiel Garlatia was killed in his sleep last night. Watch your back" and then she was gone.

Link was left to chew over the new information.

'_Talandiel…dead? But who would have done such a thing? The contestants have taken a vow not to cheat in such a way. This smells of Gannon without a doubt. I shall have to keep my eyes open.'_

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The streets of Hyrule Castle Town were glum and empty. The dull cloudy weather seemed to discourage the townspeople and Link found himself alone in the rainy streets. His lone walk in the middle of the lane did not go unnoticed by the few citizens that stood underneath the shop keeper's pergolas. Eyes followed his path toward his tent in the main square.

Upon entering he placed his borrowed shield tenderly on the edge of the gargantuan bed; he patted it tenderly before turning to the boxes that held the noble's clothes.

He knew tonight would not be the night for flashy dressing the others would wear things they could fight in, but he also knew that style would still be expected.

For the second time that day Link set about the task of finding appropriate attire for the night's activities. The boxes in the tent had been picked over mostly; he knew what Llewellyn had brought with him for the most part. However, a few trunks had remained untouched at it was to these that Link found himself attracted.

For the most part the trunks were plainly adorned, as most traveling trunks are, and he wondered if they were the only thing in this noble's possession that was not gaudy and bejeweled. This question in mind Link set about exploring the remaining parcels of clothing.

It took little time for things he liked to end up in a pile. True to his normal wardrobe, most of the articles were green, but every once in a while a red or blue would jump in to the mix. When he finished fishing through the three trunks he turned his attentions to the pile he had acquired for himself.

'_Now, what to wear. I think I will stay in these pants. They move well and I like the feeling of the material.'_

Link knew little about fabric but he did know what fell good against skin when it was hot and sweaty from a battle. The pants would remain, and so the pile shrunk almost in half. He knelt next to the pile to sort through the mess and pulled blue tunic with a silver border out.

_'To Zoraish, reminds me of Ruto' _with a shutter he decided blue was not the color for him and put the tunic back with the others. The chore continued in this fashion for some time until something under the monster bed caught his eye. It was obviously meant to be hidden from unwanted eyes. Link pulled the box out.

It was not tall, but it was long; like something you would package a dress in. Intrigued Link lifted the lid. Inside lay a Tunic and that was all, but Link could instantly see why is had its own box. It was a masterpiece of sewing, made to perfection for the spoiled noble that was currently unconscious under the covers. Its large baggy sleeves that where meant to be tucked into a pair for fencing gloves; While the shirt from and back were tight and tapered into the waist. The entire thing was embroidered with shinny black floss that must have cost a fortune. The most prominent feature in the embroidery was a grand phoenix crushing a hissing serpent in its claws, which was positioned on the back.

_'Must be the family crest.' _

It didn't take Link long to realize Llewellyn had brought the Tunic for the final event

_'He went to all the trouble of bringing it here, might as well wear it for him.' _

A wry grin appeared on Link's face and he tucked the shirt away for later use.

With the finding of the tunic, Link found himself lacking something to do. He couldn't go and mingle with the other contestants, surly they would notice he was not who he claimed to be. He had no reason to venture into the market place, having no money with which to by anything anyway. Yet the prospect of spending the rest of his time before the competition in Llewellyn's large but oddly cramped feeling tent did not appeal to him in the least.

The thrip thrip of rain reminded Link that the day was depressingly grey. He weighed the choice between remaining in Llewellyn's extravagant tent or venturing back into the bleak day to find something to occupy him mind. He cast his eyes about the tent disparagingly and promptly decided to face the rain.

Grabbing a cloak Link walked to the tent flap; he paused briefly to assure himself that Llewellyn was still asleep and then left.

Cold rain dripped down his face assuaging his warm skin. He hadn't realized just how stifling Llewellyn's tent had been. The cool air cleared his head and he felt refreshed.

He made his way through the town square; breathing in the stone smelling air (which is a smell uniquely found in large cities). The amount of people shopping had significantly deceased, he felt more comfortable with less people. He had never been comfortable in large crowds.

His feet carried him to the cobbled path that lead to the castle gate. Link paused, caught up in a sudden feeling of oddness. A little boy in green approached the guards on duty only to be turned away. Link shook his head, pulling himself back to his current time.

Turning to the right, he climbed the old vine on the wall (remembering how ironic it was). Once on the grass ledge he sat, gazing at the castle.

She would be in there, entertaining herself in some way until the tournament. She would be warm, he imagined, and comfortable. Link leaned back, resting on the cliff. His eyes slipped closed, mouth smiling as the rain slid down his face.

Link stretched, throwing his head back and gazing up into the rain. A stilling sense of quiet converged upon him. At dusk he would begin the final event. He would hurt and destroy lives, but after tonight he would be closer to returning the river of time to its rightful flow. And yet, for all the horror that would happen by night, he was at peace. The cleansing rain soaked his cloak through, but the cold did not bother him. Below guards went about their business. Link noticed they were shivering in their armor and breathing misted air.

'This is not right. We are in mid spring, it shouldn't be this cold.'

His peace had disappeared. Battle honed senses instantly awake. Could something be wrong in the sacred realm? He wasn't sure, but he knew something was not right. Evil was stirring. It had already been at work Talandiel murdered, Codorallen's fear. Link stood, no longer in a resting mood.

He dashed across the ledge and jumped the vined cliff; startling a young gate guard in the process and ran towards town. He needed to get to the temple of time. He needed to know, had Gannon escaped? Not possible.

Mud coated his boots and thighs as he trampled through the old buildings ill kempt gardens. He reached the doors and let himself in.

The room was dimly lit, torches burned in their brackets. Link noted that the temple (for a stone monolith) was overly warm. He strode to the sacred stone alter. Knowing the temple priests were surprised by his sudden entrance. Their complete stop in chanting told him that.

He knelt before the alter, hand griping the black marble. His senses expanded, finding the prison seal which held the king of evil. He aloud his awareness to comb the prison, searching for a break.

Nothing, Gannon was still bound, but the seal was weakening. He was relived, but not unworried. A weak seal meant he could still influence those with weak minds.

Link came back to himself, feeling a deep ache that always accompanied a search of that kind.

The priests chanting had not resumed, he knew they were watching him, but it couldn't be helped. He had needed to know.

Sitting back, he released the alter. He looked up to the Triforce mark above the stone wall (Which only he knew was a door). Vaguely he noticed the Triforce had a golden sheen to it.

He stood, not sure how to respond to his new knowledge. His weapons would do nothing against an enemy that had yet to escape, and he only had tantalizing hints as to Gannon's operative. He daren't act until he was sure.

'I can only work with knowledge. But there is none to be had!'

His musings continued, chasing themselves around his head in dizzying patterns. He could do nothing now, besides…he had a tournament to win.

This would have been a page divider, my laziness reaches new heights.

Sorry it has taken me so long, but I do have good excuse…Okay not a good one but a decent one. I'm getting married! Yea! July seventh! So, just thought I would tell you all. Not that it really has any relevance to the story it's self. I won't lose internet connection or anything like that; I'll just have gained a husband.

I'm not sure if I'm aloud to thank reviewers individually, so I won't, but thank you to all of you. It really kicked me into writing more!** Revised 6/8/06.**


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